Broken Mirror
by SliferHeart
Summary: Challenge from Cover Me With Starlight Demyx accidentally gets sent into an alternate dimension, where he is a cruel evil ruler, while his evil self roams free. How will he survive in the new world, and what will become of his home dimension?
1. Chapter 1

This is a challenge posted by the author of 'The Sorcerer Myde,' and this is what I came up with as a try for the gold. I got a review that held a suggestion to remove the plot summary/challenge points, and I believed that they were right and thus removed it. If you want to know what the exact wording for the challenge was, check out **Cover Me With Starlight's** story, 'The Sorcerer Myde'- the author placed the challenge within an author note at either the beginning or the end of one of their chapters.

Sorry about the long author note... Um, please enjoy, read and... well, review, I guess... Once again, all credit for the actual storyline goes to: **Cover Me With Starlight**. Thank you for the challenge.

Disclaimer: As mentioned right over head, this wasn't my idea, I don't own the characters, and I do not own the song, 'My Sitar..' (whose lyrics will be put in, briefly.)

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Chapter One: Broken Mirrors 

The inner sanctum of the ruins turned out to be a twisting, nonsensical maze of corridors. Old branches were cut off by fallen ceiling tiles, old and dented pipes and whatever else was a part of the debris. The rest of the structure, however, was in pretty good condition. The overhead lighting, although nothing like the blinding brightness in his own 'home', lit up where he was going- a definite improvement over the flickering torches sporadically placed in the Underworld on Olympus Colisium- and the non-deteriating parts held the remnants of the building as it once was- old wallpaper was easily visible along the walls.

Heartless of various types wandered the maze, charging around corners with a recklessness that wasn't matched in the slightest by the other adventurer. In fact, the latter was taking his time, trying to follow a sort of plan that would, hopefully, not get him lost any further. Demyx hesitated at a corner, counting to three before inching closer, peeking around the edge, and then continuing on. He didn't see any of the red marker lines that Zexion had suggested he make to keep from getting lost.

"Playing my sitar everyday..," Demyx headed down the corridor, singing bits and pieces of the lyrics to one of his many favorite songs. "I like my sitar... I like my sitar, I play the sitar, sitar, wherever I go..." The hallway was starting to narrow- not that he was claustrophobic or anything... but it was still a rather uncomfortable observation, "Play the sitar with my toes-" The words, and hallway, came to an abrupt stop.

Demyx glanced over the door in front of him, trying to remember whether the vague- very, very vague- directions he had been given included a door in it. "Go through the door... down the stairs... down some hallways... and..." An utter blank came up in his head. With a sigh, the blond dug into his pocket, home to every note he took down on every single mission he went on. He withdrew a pile of index cards and started flipping through them. "Dust the- no..., release the Heartless upon, no- ah!! Order cherry pie from... no, not that either.."

A few more minutes later... "AHA!!" Demyx held the correct index card, running over his own notes written in what Zexion preferred to refer to as 'incomprehensible lines of graphite more like chicken scratch than actual words.' "Go through the door, past the study and into the back room, where a very large computer thingamajig is. Go past that. Mirror is under cloth- pick it up carefully, bring it back in one piece or else. Note to self: Seven years bad luck if broken."

Demyx shook off the shudder from the last part- he had more than enough bad luck without adding another seven years to his karma.

However, as long as he successfully completed his mission- unlike the ten or so before it...- then he was bound to win some good luck back. And with that happy thought in mind, the blond placed aside the the pile of index cards, and opened the door. He took one step inside before coming to an abrupt stop.

The 'Study', or so he hoped, was a mess. A large wooden desk took up the center of the room, a pile of papers scattered across its surface. The wall behind it had been drawn on in a scrawl of writing and diagrams. Other bits of the room had the same sort of scribbles on their surfaces. A portrait that looked far too much like the Superior was resting on the floor, leaning back in its frame against the wall.

"Nice tie, boss," Demyx muttered to the painting, casting his eyes around the curved room for any sign of another way out. Nothing. He wandered further inside, turning a few circles in his search. "Ah man-" Even he could tell it was pointless- a closed off room was a closed off room. "Huh?" In his disappointed state, Demyx had leaned back against the desk, placing both hands on its surface. The pressure from his left hand must have been too great for the one corner, since it dipped towards the ground, almost threatening to break off entirely.

A long grating sound filled the room, drawing Demyx's attention to a piece of the wall to his right. A tall, rectangular piece had sunken out nearly a inch behind the rest of the wall, and was slowly sliding out of sight, behind the room. Beyond that- much to the blond's surprise and delight- was the promised second hallway between Study and Computer.

Once all was silent again, Demyx walked over and through the hidden 'door', hesitating just a step inside, waiting for the entrance to close up on him. Much to his relief, it didn't. Demyx continued on his merry way, noting that the 'hallway' as the Superior had called it, was more like a cat walk high above a theater stage. He could see the expanse of some room below, stretching beyond his sight, filled with nothing more than a lot of space, and a lot of stacked capsules against the walls.

The path took a turn away from the mystery, bending along the corners of the wall and ending abruptly in front of another open entrance. Demyx edged to the side of the entrance, figuring that checking around one more corner carefully couldn't hurt anyone or thing. In fact, it would certainly be better than risking failing yet another mission.

The room beyond the corner happened to be empty. Demyx sighed in relief and moved inside, coming to a stop in the middle of the room. A large, boxy gray machine rested against the half-wall to his left. From the top of its screen to the ceiling was made of some see-through glass or plastic, allowing those inside to overlook what was going on in the lower room. To his right was a much larger machine, taking up the entire space from floor to ceiling, a flat, red circle, with a smaller white and then dull yellow circle in that. Otherwise, there wasn't anything extraordinary about the room at all.

Minus the long, dark cloth stretching over some tall, oval object. "Bingo."

Demyx crossed the distance directly to the object, picking a side-edge and flicking aside. It wouldn't be a good idea to bring the wrong thing back to Castle That Never Was, afterall, certainly not if he wanted to make up for those past failures. He smiled at the sliver of his own reflection, letting the cloth go and covering the mirror surface again. Now all that remained was to get back to the Castle and-

"Move one more inch and you're dead."

Demyx 'eeped', freezing up instantly at the order, all thoughts of an easy, laid-back afternoon gone. Trying to remain as calm and like a real member of Organization Thirteen as possible, he glanced over his shoulder at the new comer. He spied a tall, muscular brunette in jeans, a white shirt with a darker leather jacket over it, standing in the entrance way, holding a very large, very pointy sword at him. Ice blue eyers, narrowed nearly to slits, glared at him. Not. Good.

"Step away from the mirror and turn around. Slowly."

The blond went to do what he was told, and that was when everything went wacky. His feet tangled themselves up in mid-turn, spilling him backwards against the mirror, tipping that and then himself to the ground. He could hear the echoing clang the metal frame made as it made contact on the ground, a shout from the stranger, and saw a rippling of light reflecting off the veltvet-y cloth as it flew off the mirror completely. Demyx's hand landed on the super-smooth glass surface of the mirror, and a brighter flash of light lit up the glass.

He yelped against as he felt the mirror's surface start to give and then pull his hand... then arm.. and then the rest of himself down to the floor. Struggling was useless- the now liquid-y surface was pulling him- its silvery substance licking hungrily up along his body. Everything behind him- the weird room with its lower levels, the stranger, all of it- vanished in another, brighter flash of light. He closed his eyes, and thought he could hear someone shouting... himself, maybe?

Whoever it was, it all came to an end with a very large thud against a much sturdier, harder surface than that mirror had been. Demyx stayed where he was for the longest time before pushing himself back up off the ground. "Ouch." The headache he was now suffering was even worse than the ones he got from the mornings waking up after an entire night of eating too much sugar and caffeine.

He glanced over the length of his body, grateful to find no obvious broken bones or pools of blood. A familiar voice drew his attention upwards and in front of him. "Sir?" Standing behind a row of bars, meeting his gaze with bright blue eyes from beneath the fall of silver bangs, was Zexion.

Say what?

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And that's the beginning of it. Hope you enjoyed it, thanks for reading, and catch ya with the next update. Oh!! My 'schedule' for updates: One chapter for Summer Art Class, followed by one of Heart Steeped in Darkness, and then this one, Broken Mirrors. More or less, knowing me- I doubt that I'll stick to it, but I'm gonna try. Anyways... thanks and please review! 


	2. Chapter 2

Yay!!! Thank you everyone for reading, reviewing (putting this into your fav's... ), etc...etc... I truly appreciate them all, so really: thanks. But enough talking-!! COOKIES FOR ALL (usually I can bake... so they won't poison you. So eat up and relax, and if you start clucking like a duck uncontrollably- don't worry, that's a normal reaction.)

Disclaimer: I don't own the plot idea nor the characters.

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Chapter Two: A Real Big Problem

Zexion held a certain amount of pride in his ability to keep his composure, which wasn't so easy when one was locked up in an extremely dark room, in a cage, with no visitors save one's own boss, who had taken an extra, extra special liking to one. In fact, if the rumors circulating about what had happened to the other 'pets' before him, then it would be understandably difficult to remain calm and sane.

That is the last time I ever compliment him in order to stay on his good side, Zexion thought to himself, one hand nervously fingering the complimentory collar he had gotten upon his 'promotion'. It was a simple braided length that was often found in beach tourist traps for sale, minus the extra spells and hexes; a real show of how far he had gotten onto his Boss's good side. It was much better than a ratty old dog collar, for sure. More dignifying, if self-delusion was needed for a few horrifying minutes.

As for his surroundings, it could have been worse. The darkness did not bother him in the least, it was where his powers stemmed from after all, but there was no way he was ever going to use the over-sized bird swing voluntarily. Although, if his newest nickname, Zexy Canary, meant anything, then bird swing it was. But the feathers are out.

Fortunately, there was an actual bed and a book case with actual books on the shelves (plus a sheltered area for other necessities). Unfortunately, the books weren't on his more favorable subjects, and he was usually requested to read them aloud compared to reading them by himself.. and the bed, well, let's leave it with the description of: one that Zexion had never believed he'd ever enounter in his life, much less be forced to use. To him, a 'bed' was a rectangular object with a mattress, some sort of covering and a pillow. Not some bright purple and pink heart-shaped montrosity that nearly glowed in the dark from the colors and its sheer ugliness.

He didn't even want to think about what his Boss put it in there for.

Escape, even if it was possible, would have been suicide. The first pet had gotten so far to the outer walls of the Castle.. and then he was caught and lord knows what really happened after that. Knowing his Boss, Zexion had decided after reviewing all the rumors he had heard from some of the older members that the absolute worst rumor was probably the truth. It wasn't a pleasant alternative.

The door swung open, allowing the tiniest sliver of light- something Zexion thought he would never really miss- into the room for as long it took his visitor to enter. Naturally, that wasn't long-lasting. Zexion's attention, nevertheless was drawn out of his thoughts and onto the newcomer. His Boss, at first sight, was not what some people would immediately associate with 'evil'. He was barely above average height, had a slim figure and short blond hair styled in a unique fashion. Zexion may have even called him handsome since the blond had eyes the color of the sea in summer, and a smile that, when he wasn't sneering or smirking at someone, could be described as 'charming.' Yet, behind those eyes was a glint of warning, and the smile betrayed his usual cruelty.

His Boss took his time strolling up to the bars of the cage, making no effort to hide the look-overs he gave his prisoner. A small smile played on his lips. He leaned against the cage and asked, "And how is my little Zexy Canary doing today? I missed you.."

Zexion tried to refrain from flinching back or even running franctically to the other side of the cage. "I'm... fine." That sounded better than 'slowly going crazy, please don't hurt me, I'm sorry for whatever I did.' Etcetera.

"Did you miss me?"

"Uh, n-yeah."

A pout formed on the blond's face. It was sorely undermined by his narrowed eyes. "You don't sound it, Zexy."

"I really missed you, sir."

The smile was back. The blond gestured for Zexion to come closer, which the latter did after the briefest of hesitations. He knew better than to disobey any whim from long before becoming the latest 'pet.' It took far more will power to not make any move away when the blond traced the side of his face with one hand and smoothed his hair off his face. "I love your hair, Zexy, but you should really consider keeping it out of your eyes at least. They're so lovely..."

The door didn't so much as swing open as it did exploud. Zexion inwardly sighed in relief and scittered back from the cage wall as the fawning came to an end, his Boss whirling around and targeting the intruder with a glare. If the intruder had been anyone but the youngest 'member' of the Organization, he would have considered giving them a 'thank-you' note. As it was, the knife-weilding, short brunette was not his first choice as his hero. The kid was just too much like Demyx for anyone's comfort.

Sora wandered further into the room, either not registering that the glare on his Boss's face was aimed at him or ignoring the look. One hand was absentmindedly fingering a handle to one of the many knives kept in his belt for easy access. Zexion knew that there were also several similar weapons- plus a few other such horrible things, like poison darts- hidden on the kid's person, including in his boots, in some hidden pocket in the black pants and a few dozen or so up his sleeves, even if he wore a short-sleeved shirt or tank top one day.

Demyx crossed his arms over his chest. "If you hadn't noticed, I'm busy."

The newcomer's blue eyes slid past his Boss and onto Zexion. A smirk crossed his face. "Yeah, I bet."

"What do you want?"

Sora's expression turned into a pout, fully directed up at their Boss. Whatever some may say, Zexion knew well enough that the two were as close to friends as they were both capable of being. The brunette nearly followed Demyx's every move, matching him trick for trick, betrayal for betrayal- even personal hobbies. Wasting away in some other part of the Castle was Sora's own 'pet', detained in their own cage as far as anyone knew. Although, whereas Demyx had so far gone through two 'pets' already, the kid had yet to move onto a third.

Whoever that next victim was, Zexion had one thing to say to them. Well, two:

Lucky.

Run!

"My pet tried to bite me." The blue eyes slid onto Zexion again, as if it was all his fault. Zexion made a mental note to himself to check his next meal for any poison added in as a spice. "Again! I don't get it.."

"You should train him better."

"I did- but he's just so stubborn... I don't want to starve him to death... and I can't torture him- he's too cute."

Sora's reply was met with little sympathy from Demyx. Zexion was afraid he'd just send Sora away, or delay the complaining for another hour, but the blond sighed and stepped away from the cage. The move was worth an inner cheering. Keep going, Zexion thought, just keeeeeeeep walking until you're out of here!

"Fine.. I suppose I could help you out this one time..." The blond swept past Sora, the glare still on his face. The brunette gave Zexion one last smirk before following. "Of course, you do owe me for this."

The door was opened once again as the two left the room. Zexion could still hear Sora's reply as the door swung shut. "Oh? What's the job, boss?" The genuine smile he had spied on the brunette's face was enough to make him shudder. That kid was just wrong, but at least he managed to save Zexion from his boss for another morning. Even better, if they were going to spend the rest of the day dealing with whomever had ticked Demyx off this time while he 'trained' the other pet, than the blond wouldn't be around for another visit until the next morning.

And with that thought in mind, Zexion settled reluctantly on the edge of the ridiculous 'bed', selecting one of the least offending books from the shelf and began reading.

He didn't get too far into it, not that he really wanted to anyways. There was an exceptionally bright flash of light, illuminating the entire room and blinding anything inside it completely for a few seconds. It was followed by a loud, echoing thud as something large and heavy crashed into the ground. Zexion didn't move beyond placing aside the book and trying to shake off the pain and disorientation the light flash had given him. Once he was able to see again, he turned his gaze onto the source of the noise, finding his Boss lying in a crumpled heap on the ground near his cage.

Before he could even begin to wonder what had happened, the blond groaned in pain and pushed himself up into a sitting position. Zexion decided that feigning concern would go well for him the next time, and he got up and walked to the side of the cage. "Sir?"

Demyx turned his gaze upwards and blinked. The expression on his face, Zexion realized, wasn't one he had seen before. Was the guy actually surprised? Confused even? He had only been gone for a few minutes at most- what had happened in that time.

The blond's mouth worked for a moment, no sound coming out until he gulped, shook his head and turned back towars Zexion. "What's going on, Zexion? I was in Hollow Bastion-"

His words came to an abrupt yelp at the end as the door made another slamming explosion. Sora, to Zexion's non-relief, came running inside, skidding to a halt from Demyx. "Did you teleport or something? You could of warned me before blinding me with that light, boss-!"

"What?"

Sora rolled his eyes. "Nevermind... you said you had a job for me, and that you were going to help train my pet- is that still on, or would you rather put it off so you can play with your pet some more?" His gaze, once again, slid onto Zexion. It was obvious, if not from the tone of his voice as he said 'pet' then from his gaze, that the brunette was getting annoyed at the attention Zexion was getting from Demyx. The excess of attention, even, if the blond really had tried teleporting away from Sora.

"Oh... no, uh- you can go do that job... um.," Demyx's eyes flicked up to Zexion. The latter almost fooled himself into thinking he had seen a hidden plea for help in the sea-colored eyes. As if he could help even if he wanted to. "And I guess I can train the pet..."

Even his voice didn't sound right- but Sora never seemed to notice. The brunette's face lit up with a grin. "Awesome. Then I'll report back later tonight, boss." He gave the blond a mock salute before he walked quickly off. One hand reached down and pulled a knife from out of his belt. The wicked blade shone in the light from the hallway as the door was whisked open and closed again.

"Zexion-" The silver-haired Nobody's attention was swung back onto Demyx as the latter scrambled up onto his feet, "What's going on? How did the Keyblade Master get in here? And why are you locked up?" His voice was laced with the thinnest thread of- was it even possible?- panic.

Zexion thought for a few seconds, studying his Boss closely. He wouldn't put it past the blond to put on an act to catch him off balance, but this would be quite the act. It might be worth it to try taking advantage of the situation. "Sir... I think someone targeted you with a spell, which must have caused that flash of light and your disorientation. Fortunately, it hasn't seemed to harm you in any other way.." Zexion didn't know of any hex that, even if it was messed up horribly, would cause such a kind effect, but the explanation sounded perfectly plausible as far as he could tell.

"A hex? Nuh-uh! It was that mirror! The one Xemnas told me to get and bring back for him and now he's going to kill me..." The blond's head dipped down towards the ground and stayed there for a few seconds. "Actually, maybe it was some sort of hex. There was that guy with the sword... maybe he cast a spell on me?" His eyes flicked up towards Zexion again, looking for a reply.

"It's... possible..."

"Yeah. So, then this is just some weird hallucination, brought on by that spell. And I'll wake up any second now, back in Hollow Bastion, with the mirror for Xemnas." Demyx nodded to himself, straightening back up. "I better get going now, hallucination Zexy, I have to finish this mission. Bye!" He headed directly for the door, humming the notes to a song Zexion had never heard before. He was gone before the silver-haired man could remember to ask to be let out- on whatever grounds he could fool his Boss on.

Left alone once again, he slapped his forehead with one hand. "I should've asked him first!" At least, he figured after a few minutes of inwardly yelling at himself for being so stupid, Demyx wasn't planning on spending extra time with him, as that freaky kid mentioned.

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This was going to have another part to it... but I think it'd be a whole lot longer if I did that.. so I'll leave that to the next chapter... anyways... um, hope you enjoyed it, catch ya next time! 


	3. Chapter 3

Ah... it is fun to be writing... Not much else to say beyond thanking you once again for reading and reviewing. Enjoy!!

**Note**: I realized that I made a bit of a mistake in the first chapter... being that I made it so that the other members of the Organization Thirteen (numbers four, five, six, eleven and twelve, more or less thirteen) were still around. However, that is totally out of the timeline for the story... so I shall fix that later, just note that Vexen, Lexeaous, Zexion, Larxene and Marluxia are dead (unfortunately, for some of 'em) and Roxas is missing (slash with Sora again.) I apologize for the mix up, and I will make sure that doesn't happen again. Thanks!!

Disclaimer: Don't own nothing... just read the disclaimer off from the first chapter if you must. j/k.

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Chapter Three: A Real Big Problem, Part Two

Leon was not a lucky guy. He never won a lottery or a game of Bingo in school, had never been picked first for a team at recess, and had yet to personally pound Maleficent's face in for destroying his world all those years ago. Of course, he had been lucky enough to survive the destruction of his world, had met and made friends with numerous other people that he wouldn't have met before, and had even hit a homerun in some game of 'baseball' off of his rival. (That had been a great day.)

On this day and in that moment, however, he had reached the bottom of his unlucky side of life. The bright flash of light accompanying the stranger's fall had gotten him fully in the eyes, keeping him effectively blinded for far too long. When it finally wore off, Leon found that the blond had gotten back up to his feet, and was brushing off the dust on his black attire as calm as could be. His green-blue eyes scanned around the room. "Well... this is interesting.." His eyes widened slightly as he finally took Leon's presence. They narrowed again almost instantly. "My, my, my... looks like I've beaten Sora to the chase. Lucky me."

Was this the same skittered man that had been caught in a corner just a few seconds ago? Leon shook off his sudden unease and confusion- what did Sora have to do with this?- and brought his gunblade, Lionheart, up and level to the stranger's chest. "Don't take another step."

"Don't even presume you can tell me what to do!" The stranger growled. A column of water flowed from one of his hands, spreading out in the air and vanishing, leaving a sword behind in his hand. The blade was as wide as the gunblade, although the edges held none of the notches from previous fights that dotted the edge of the gunblade. Down the middle was a straight path of color matching the blue of the handle. The blond gave the gunblade poised at him a curious look. "You actually fixed that piece of junk? Oh well- I broke it once, I don't mind doing it again."

Leon scowled. What was this guy talking about? No one had ever broken Lionheart. The blond was speaking as if they had met before, yet he brought up no memories to mind for the brunette.

He didn't have to time to think it over further. Moving more quickly and easily than leon would have thought possible a few seconds ago, the blond raised his sword up and lunged forward, bringing the blade back down in a head-splitting swipe. Leon swung the gunblade to block the blow.

Metal crashed against metal, shedding sparks through the air. The ringing chord assualted Leon's ears. He hadn't expected the strength behind the blond's strike; it was taking all of his own strength just to hold up his defenses. Regardless, he glared steadily and defiantly back up into the blond's sea-colored, coolly amused gaze.

He gathered his strength and pushed back, swatting the blue-streaked sword off and knocking its owner back. Without leeting a second go by, leon lunged forward, swinging Lionheart around for the attack. he spied a bright flash of metal too late; unable to stop his momentum, Leon's gunblade met the other sword in mid-swing, creating an even louder cacophonous clang and larger rain of sparks.

The gunblade bent backwards at the point where the sword blades met. A thin, jagged line, glowing with a light of its own, gleamed a path across the width of the blade. Leon saw these minute changes with a sense of awe, and then shock as the impossible and yet apparently inevitable occurred.

Lionheart did not so much as break as it did shatter. Most of the blade remained in one piece, falling onto the floor with a mettalic clang that seemed deafening to Leon. His hands were now only holding the handle and a tiny part of the blade of his beloved gunblade, and then not even that. The blond's sword, free of any restraints, continued through its path, knocking the remaining piece of Lionheart out of Leon's grip and slashing diagonally across his chest, leaving a bloody cut.

Leon fell backwards, reality crashing down with him. His chest felt as if it was on fire, the floor had connected with his head hard enough to cast a blurry edge to his vision.

A shadow fell over his face, one that happened to have bright sea eyes and blond hair, plus the gleaming blue-streaked sword in one gloved hand. It grinned. "I just want you to know," the words faded in and out to Leon's ears, "that I am really going to enjoy wiping out the rest of your pathetic little rebellion..." The blurred edges took over his entire vision, slowly darkening. He thought he saw the Shadow raise some gleaming object above his chest, but he could have been wrong.

Everything blacked out completely then, with the last of the Shadow's words.

"Es..pecial...ly... Rox...as..."

* * *

The ringing crash echoing back at him sent a stab of pain through his heart. For a second, he stood in the midst of the corridors, inwardly praying that he hadn't heard the noise. Within the next he was racing through the maze, navigating around corners haphazardly, dealing any wandering Heartless a single blow through their bodies if they got in his way.

He, like the rest of the group he ran with, knew the underground part of the castle by heart. It didn't take him long to get to the door leading to Ansem's Study, to slam it open and race onwards past the desk, through the secret entrance and back to the Computer Room. There, he came to an abrupt stop, surprise and dismay nearly making him drop his sword.

It was exactly how his dream had been. Leon stretched out on his back, shirt torn and already soaked with bright red blood, eyes closed, body limp and unmoving. The stranger, his face turned away from view, a wicked blue-streaked sword poised above the brunette's already wounded self. There wasn't any differing detail between the two- even Lionheart was lying in the same spots he had seen in the dream.

He even knew what was going to happen. His dream had showed him- every little bit of it, no matter how bloody and how hard he had fought to wake up. The sword tip would go straight into and through his friend's heart, spewing his life's blood out all over the room. The blond would not flinch at the blood spattering the length of his body, the sword's blade, even the tiny splashes that would hit his face. Leon's eyes would snap open, two bright blue eyes open wide in shock and pain.. nevermind for the last time.

A second pang of pain and unease rushed through him as the blond suddenly went to deliver the death stroke. Although his mind screamed in fear, he himself gripped his own sword tighter and rushed forward. Cloud wasn't sure what he shouted, nor did he really care. He brought his sword with an upwards swipe. The sharp edges of the Buster Sword gave Leon another slash across his abdomin, the distance between himself and the stranger's sword being too close for the Buster Sword to be able to avoid Leon at all. Cloud doubted that the brunette would mind.

The blue-streaked sword twirled through the air, free of its owner's hand holding onto it. It landed, harmlessly, against the tiled floor, where it flashed brightly and melted into a puddle of water. Cloud noticed nothing, but kept the Buster Sword and himself in between the other blond and Leon. "Who are you?" He demanded after a quick study. The stranger didn't look like the person who'd be on Sephiroth's side.

"You're going to regret doing that." Cloud scowled, but didn't ask any other questions. He charged once again, hoping he'd be able to swipe the smirk off the stranger's face.

The Buster Sword sliced through a pillar of dark smoke, swiping off nothing but vapors. Cloud muttered a curse under his breath and turned back to check on Leon. He knelt down next to the brunette, hesitated, and picked up an arm to search for a pulse on his wrist. For a horrifying moment, he thought that, despite the dream's warning, he had been too late, but then he felt the push against his finger tips as blood flowed past his touch.

So Leon was still alive. He was even breathing, as Cloud saw from the gentle rise and fall of the brunette's chest. However, he was in no condition to be moved. Cloud dug a Hi-Potion from his pocket and twisted the cap off the top of the bottle. He poured small amounts of the restorative medicine on the brunette's wounds before lifting up his head and getting him to drink the rest. It wouldn't fully heal him, but it would do until Aerith or Merlin could get there and finish the job with some Cure spells.

"Just hold on, Leon," Cloud muttered to no one in particular- it wasn't like the brunette could hear him, after all. He gently let Leon's head rest against the floor again and went on another digging expedition through his pockets, pulling a battered but still working cell phone. With one practiced flick of his wrist, the blond had flipped open the top of the phone and was calling Merlin's home through speed dial.

Cloud closed his eyes, letting his thoughts wander a bit as he listened to the other end of the connection ring. Finally, after what seemed like an eternity of endless ringing- no answering machines hidden away in the wizard's abode- the other side picked up. Yuffie's overly cheerful voice was on the opposite end. He cut through the middle of her words, "It's Cloud. I'm in the Computer Room with Leon.. he's been hurt. Get Aer-"

"-Oh my god-!! What happened, is he-?"

"Yuffie," he didn't need to wait through the twenty questions, and Leon certainly couldn't, "Get Aerith or Merlin to come out here, okay? We'll be here." Cloud flipped the phone shut again, cutting off the call before the ninja could start in. Now all that was left to do was to wait, and hopefully not for long. He placed the cell phone aside and wrestled his one sleeved trench coat off. That he folded up for a make-shift pillow which he slipped under the brunette's head.

Cloud leaned back, shifting himself into a more comfortable position. After a few seconds he remembered the cell phone. He'd have to remember to thank Aerith and Tiffa for forcing him into buying and keeping it with him. Originally he figured it a waste of space, but he could almost see the value of having one as of right then. It had helped save Leon's life, for one.

His wait, or rather Leon's wait, did not last long. The blond, having gotten lost in his own thoughts, lifted his head up towards the entrance of the Computer Room as he heard the unmistakable sounds of someone running. They kept getting louder until the newcomer finally arrived. She hesitated just inside the entrance way, her hand flying up to her face with a silent gasp, bright green eyes widening momentarily. The young woman, Aerith, shook it off, and quickly joined Cloud by the prone brunette.

"I'm sorry it took awhile, but Merlin was out and Tiffa and I were getting some essentials in the Market place," Aerith swept her wavy auborn hair back and out of her way. Cloud didn't reply, and merely watched as she gently traced a finger down the brunette's face and just above the wounds. Her mouth worked, but nothing came out. "Do you know how this happened?" She placed her hand, palm down, on his chest. Cloud heard her mumble something, and guessed it had been 'Cura'.

For a while he stayed silent, letting Aerith focus entirely on her healing spell. Once or twice, he wasn't too sure, she muttered the same magic command again, and another flow of bright green light moved from her hand and across Leon. The larger cut, inflicted by the stranger, began to close up- the one Buster Sword had inflicted was mostly knit back up into healthy skin.

Cloud moved his gaze up onto the brunette's face. Leon hadn't moved once since he had gotten there, and it was starting to worry him a little. How badly the stranger hurt him while Cloud raced through the corridors was beyond him; not even the dream had shown him that. One thing was for sure, though.

That blue-eyed punk was going to regret his actions today. In fact, Cloud was going to make it so that the punk regretted being born.

"Well, that's the best I can do as of right now.." His eyes flicked back to Aerith. The woman had removed her hand and was leaning back on her legs. There was a light sheen to her skin, which had gone a touch paler since he last saw. Her breath came and went a little harder, a touch more rapid. Aerith fixed him with her gaze. "What happened to him, Cloud?"

He shook his head. The progress on healing Leon had gone only so far- Buster Sword's mark was gone, but the brunette was still out cold and the longer deeper cut was still an ugly mark across his chest, even if the bleeding had slowed to a trickle. "I'll tell everyone together. Can we move him now?"

Aerith sighed, her eyes looking over Leon and assessing the situation. "We don't have much of a choice..."

"Fine." He nodded once. "You got-"

"I got his legs."

Cloud glanced down at her nonetheless, nodded once more and got his hold on the brunette by threading his arms under the brunette's. "Ready? One.. two.."

"Three." Aerith finished, lifting up Leon's legs while Cloud got his upper body. Without another word, he led the way back out, inwardly fuming at the condition his friend was still in. That punk was really going to regret this day- he was going to see to that personally.

* * *

Bada-dum!!! (j/k) Thanks for reading, hoped you enjoy... and review!! I luv the feedback, as always! 


	4. Chapter 4

Okay, I don't exactly have much to say- yet again- but the usual. Thanks, ya'll!! Enjoy, read, review... What else... right?

Disclaimer: See first Chapter if you really need the refresher. j/k... I don't own nothing since I have yet to win the lottery. (I can't believe that the first four were right and then... blah. j/k)

* * *

Chapter Four: We're Not In The World of OZ, Toto.

The air in the space of the Postern seemed to shimmer, and then a spot on the metal-plated ground turned into a swirling circle of darkness. It formed into a pillar of the same matter from the top down. After a few seconds, it disappeared, leaving the tall, blue-eyed blond behind. Demyx cast his cool gaze around his new surroundings, taking in the flat open space, one side of which was bordered by the castle, the other edged by a railing.

"Hmmm... Hollow Bastion," the blond muttered to himself once he recognized where he was, "it has been a looong time." Or had it? Everything wasn't left as he had remembered it, and he was certain that any reconstruction the miserable beings left on the world wouldn't have advanced this quickly. Espeically when Leon and the others were too busy whipping up a half-baked 'rebellion.'

And speaking of the others, they certainly weren't themselves. Besides the fixed gunblade, Leon had seemed to be drastically weaker than he remembered. It hadn't even been a good fight, like a few others of late.

Demyx started walking, soon leaving the flat ground of the Postern for the uneven, winding path between the city of Hollow Bastion and the castle. His footsteps made steady crunches on the loose dirt; the sound kept him company on the trek. Every so often, the path branched off itself, often leading to a patch of open ground where old machinary, rusting away under the sun, rested. He glanced over these, smirking to himself at the memories they raised... and frowning at their very existence.

He stepped off the path and into the relatively busy city, taking little notice of the auborn-haired girl slipping past him. For a long moment, the blond just stood there, growing more perplexed as each second passed. This wasn't right. Why wasn't everyone running for their dear lives from him? Did anyone from this blasted world learn anything?! Talk about no respect these days.. It was almost enough to make him call up the Duer-ik (or whatever it's name had been) Blade and start hacking and slashing all around the place.

As it was, he managed- barely- to withhold himself from indulging upon less civilized behavior, and instead took some time to tour the world he remembered destroying in his fondest of memories. Except, nothing was in the state he could remember leaving it in. The streets were clear of building debris, people wandered around, ignorant of their leader standing and glaring at them, and even Market Square- the one place Demyx could recall ripping up with his own two hands, more or less, with perfect clarity- was perfectly intact. Thriving, even.

What was going on?

Demyx's wanderings came to an end by the edge of the Crystal Fissure. The neon blue edges of the walls and valleys split out in wild lightning zig-zags before him. The scenery could have almost passed for beautiful, if not for the angular, dark and gothic castle resting on a piece of level ground in the distance. Maleficent's old hideout, to him at least, had not been left as badly damaged as the world it was located in, but he had doubts that it would look the same way as in his memories if he were to teleport there.

He sensed the appearance of a portal behind him, like a low hum of insects in a meadow, and turned around to face which ever of his underlings showed up. Who did step out onto the blue ground startled him, however. Big time.

Saix was a striking person on his own, with bright, sky-blue shoulder-length hair, gold eyes and the 'x' scar stamped on his face. A glare was settled on that face at the moment, directed into the sea-colored eyes of the blond. For Demyx, though, that wasn't what had made his heart skip a beat and his feet to stumble into each other (much like his other self was far more accostumed to having happen to him).

The last time he had seen Saix moving around and, basically, alive, was a few months ago. The very, very last time Demyx had seen his pale, scarred face was during the rather informal burial for the guy.

"Number Nine," Saix took a step out of the dying smoke, taking no notice of the blond's shock, "did you acquire the mirror? Or have you just been wandering around Hollow Bastion this morning?" A twitch of a smile- no more than a twitch- suggested that he believed in the latter.

Demyx scowled, the surprise he had felt easily vanishing away. Even if this was clearly not his time- or whatever- absolutely no one, especially not a deceased fool, could speak in such a fashion to him. More so if they refused to acknowledge his leadership. "Number... Nine..? You are sorely mistaken." Duer-ik came, as bidden, to one hand. "But I'd be more than glad to remind you.." He twirled the blade in front of him, pleased to see some of the old shock come back into Saix's eyes.

"Number Nine-"

"Beat it into your head, E-lev-en. If you must follow that pointless number system, then I would be Number One. Got it?"

Saix was frowning now, his already thin lips pressed into a nearly invisible line. The blond smirked. After a moment, the blue-haired Nobody sighed. "Obviously even this simple assignment has proved to be too much for you, Number Nine." He didn't get another chance to speak. Demyx summond a circle of water under Saix's feet and gestured upwards with his free hand. A spiraling column of the liquid sprung up and circled around his body, like a boa constrictor keeping its prey from moving.

For a while, Demyx just let it be as it was and walked around the squirming cocoon that was Saix. "This is rather distressing... I've been your commander for over- what is it now, five years?- five long years, and yet what is with this 'Number Nine' nonsense? Don't you learn anything?" He stopped directly in front of the other Nobody. "Oh well. Good teachers are the those with the most patience, after all, and everyone knows how patient I can be." Demyx rested Duer-ik against his leg, the pointed tip dug a tiny hole into the ground, while its owner removed his gloves and rolled up his sleeves to his elbows.

"Let's get the lesson underway, shall we?" Demyx absent-mindedly stuffed his gloves into a pocket- absent of any 'note' cards- and picked Duer-ik back up. It's bight edge shined in the sun. "What's my number, Eleven?" he shook his head at the glare leveled at him. "Nope." Almost sadly, the blond lifted the blue-streaked sword up and brought it around. The blade bit into Saix's leg, leaving behind a nasty gash if not a future scar. A thin sheet of water over the Nobody's mouth muffled the surprised yelp of pain.

Demyx almost admired him for that- how many beings out there had Saix's will power and strength to keep from screaming outright? And how many of those rare individuals would continue to be so defiant, even when it was clearly all in vain? Only silly, stubborn Saix, of course!

"The answer, Number Eleven, would be 'One.' Simple, no?" Demyx calmly swiped Duer-ik clean with the bottom edge of his cloak. "What's my number, Saix?" Another glare, another slash, another yelp. It went on for nearly ten hits more, and then even the Luna Diviner's willpower started to run low. Droplets of blood were beginning to form slightly larger puddles of blood on the ground by the time the yelps became screams.

He soon stopped asking, his attention more fixated on the work at hand. Some lessons were hard to learn, sometimes they were difficult to teach. But that was okay. Demyx allowed Duer-ik to take another bite out of the slumped form of Saix. It was okay- patience made even the worst learners in history remember their lessons.

* * *

"You're not a pet," Demyx stated flatly, looking down and into the eyes of a boy- and a familiar one at that- not much older than the Keyblade Master. He had spent a good amount of time wandering through the hallways between the dark room and this one, coming across absolutely no one else. That in itself wasn't entirely odd; Xemnas had started sending members out more and more often lately on diversifying missions.

The system of corridors themselves, though... Now they were a bit different, unless if the Superior had decided to call in a some painters and what not in the time he'd been out to repaint the walls, change the floor tiles and switch the ceiling lights. Instead of the plain white walls and tiles, the walls were a light blue, complimented by the darker, royal blue and black striped shade of the ground. Whether it was because of the altered coloring, or just different lighting, the corridors did not have the blinding intensity like he was used to.

Rather it was, to put it simply, like walking through a large body of water- a river, even. Regardless, the hallway system retained its same maze-like structure, getting him lost within two seconds of stepping into them.

Finally, though, he came to his destination (after a large amount of time spent opening doors randomly along his path). When Demyx spied another cage, he nearly sighed in relief. Nothing against walking, but he was getting tired of getting lost- and the marker he had used in Ansem's Study had disappeared on him.

The blond walked towards the cage, whistling the tune to another song. This was one wacky, but perfectly okay, sort of dream. From fetching mirrors to talking to a caged Zexy, and now to train some pet. The report he was going to have to write for Xemnas was going to be extremely bizarre, to say the least. Howver, bizarre beat having to fight any day.

His whistling came to an abrupt stop at the sound of chains rattling inside the cage. The movement betrayed its captive's position. The boy had curled up into the back corner, in between a bed and the bars. Besides, a few dog toys and a curtained-off area, nothing else of note populated the cage's space. A metal collar had been fitted around the boy's neck, the chain connected to that and a center ceiling bar. It was faintly obscured by his silver hair, which fell in layers down and past his shoulders. Bright blue-green eyes glared directly up at Demyx, his mouth was a set line. Smudges of dirt, flakes of dried blood and bruises darkened the boy's otherwise light and unblemished skin.

"What do you want?" The chain rattled more as Riku- for that, despite his appearance, was definitely who Demyx thought he was- stood up. He did not move any closer to the blond, who had by that time reached the edge of the cage, but stayed where he was, hands clenched into fists.

That was where Demyx had uttered his infamously obvious remark- only one of many in his life. "You're not a pet. Why are you locked up in a cage?"

"Why?" Riku repeated in a low voice, almost a growl. The teenager moved around the bed and came to a stop by its foot. "Do you suffer from periods of amnesia as well as insanity?"

"No.., I don't think so.."

"Then you know exactly why I am here!"

The level of venom in his voice set Demyx back a few steps. The blond did not say anything for a long time, his thoughts put into too much of a whirl to think up a response. "Geez, man- I didn't put you in there," he said. Another smoking glare was sent towards him, forcing him back another step. "Um.. I'm supposed to train you, but... you're not a pet., so... Um... sit?"

"Go sit on a-"

The rest of Riku's retort caused Demyx's mouth to drop open and his face to flush a dark red. He hadn't personally come face to face with the Keyblade Master's friend before this, and for that he was suddenly grateful. The look on the kid's face suddenly became more shrewd and searching. His gaze flicked over the blond's face and then over his entire body. "What?" Demyx snapped, growing more uncomfortable by the second.

"I'm staring down a bug, sir." There was a pause as Riku took a step back, evidently- even to the generally unobservant blond- awaiting some violent response. When none came, he moved towards the bars of the cage by a few feet. "You sure you're not suffering from amnesia?"

Demyx nodded.

"Uh-huh. Well, you're act isn't fooling me. So just drop it, okay? I'd rather be dead than stuck in this cursed place for another second."

"Act?" The blond repeated, "I'm not acting.. This is all some wacky dream, so you won't be stuck in there any longer. I hope. This dream or hallucination or whatever has really gone on for some time..." Demyx trailed off as he became fixated on figuring out just how much time had passed. Even that came to a stop when he realized that the silver-haired teenager had fixed him with another glare.

Riku stalked towards him, coming to a stop still three feet away. "Dream..? This," he made some wild gestures around at the cage and the open room, "is no dream, idiot! You stuck me in this cage for that son of a -----, Sora- who you sent out to 'eliminate' anyone that had enough guts if not strength to stick up to you, coward! And you imprisoned Zexion into that other cage. And you destroyed every single world you've come across. And you have personally murdered more souls than any other soul could possibly handle. You-!!" Riku had emphasized every 'you' with a growl, shouting out the rest. Now he spoke in a near whisper, "When I get out of here, I will tear you apart with my bare hands. Everything you did, everyone you hurt- I am going to avenge them. Every... last.. one..." He had closed the distance between them; his hands and curled around and clamped down upon the bars of the cage. "Do you still think this some dream.?"

Demyx could feel himself shaking from the verbal assualt. A part of him hotly denied every single charge- he could hardly bare the sight of blood, let alone contemplate destroying entire worlds on his own and murdering apparently hundreds of people- and yet another part almost accepted them. How many times had he thought of getting Axel and some of the other pranksters in the Organization back with something a little more damaging than just flooding their rooms? Hadn't there been an underlying glint of fear in Zexion's eyes as the latter spoke to him, calling him 'sir' after every sentence in a careful tone of voice? Did Sora- the Keyblade Master- call him 'sir' with a knife and not the keyblade in his hand?

He knew that it wasn't him the kid was speaking of, but his words were touching a little too close to some of his less admirable inner thoughts for comfort.

He shook his head. And left.

* * *

Zexion flipped through the pages of a book, trying not to read over some of the words until it came to a relatively clean part. With a good amount of time entirely to himself, he had slowly started to loosen up again, and found a good spot on the bed to relax. Thoughts of his Boss, however, were not too far from mind. The previous conversation had offered some vital details to store away for later use. Even something too insignificant for the regular person to take note of, Zexion knew that it might just be the difference between getting rid of the blond forever... or dying and leaving a defenseless universe to the psychopath's mercy.

Of which he knew there was precious little.

He snapped the book shut as a new, familiar scent crossed his notice. He sat straight up and edged himself to the ground. "Demyx isn't nearby, is he?" Zexion asked the newcomer, placing the book- what a laugh- aside before heading straight to the side of the cage where his visitor stood.

The woman had her slender arms crossed over her chest. One hip was touching the bar. Her bright blond hair, reaching just past her shoulders, was gelled back except for two locks of hair, which had been styled to flow back off her face nearly a inch above her skull. Green eyes met Zexion's gaze; eyes that, he saw, held more sadness than her original fiery spunk.

Her voice was naturally high-pitched, almost as if she belonged in a cheerleading squad than the remains of Organization Thirteen. "Of course he isn't. I'm not stupid." Larxene gave him a look- a mere ghost of something that would have made people feel like right fools. "Did you see the Boss today?"

Zexion nodded. "Did you?"

"Duh. I heard him coming a mile away," she glanced over her shoulder towards the door- a brief check, nothing more. Just in case, you see- and then back to him, "and I watched him go by from inside the Rec' Room.. through the open crack. He- he didn't look different, but," she broke off again and shrugged, "he looked different. I mean, he was singing the words to some song and he was smiling. Genuinely smiling. And he was lost- I heard him talking out loud to himself. He had no idea where he was."

Zexion listened closely to her words, comparing her notes with the ones he had made. "He was acting strangely before.." Larxene's green eyes looked at him curiously, but he choose not to speak further on the subject. "Where's Xigbar right now?"

"Around here, somewhere. Probably up in Proof of Existence."

Again? Zexion didn't need to ask that, he knew just as well as Larxene and Xigbar did. All three of them, maybe even Axel, visited Proof of Existence, and its riser-like levels of tombs, several times.

But he was thus far unharmed, and that's what mattered. "And Axel?"

Larxene shrugged. "Who knows? I haven't seen him in ages." She leaned in closer to the bars and pitched her voice lower in order to ask, "Are we going to make good on this opportunity, or not?"

Zexion looked into her eyes and saw that a part of her- a very large part- desperately wanted him to say 'yes', to promise that this time they weren't going to let another chance go by. It was all or nothing. And yet, there was another part that hoped he'd shake his head. She was scared, and she had every reason to be. The longer they had stayed alive in the Organization, the more they had seen and learned. Too much, perhaps.

Or just enough.

"Well, Rex? We breaking you out?"

Zexion sighed. "I-" He broke off as another, terribly familiar scent brushed against his senses. He seized up instantly. "Larxene- get out of here."

She didn't need any further prompting. The remaining tendrils of smoke remained unnoticed by the newcomer. He just stared listlessly from where his portal had appeared. For nearly a minute, neither man moved or spoke. Zexion stepped back from the cage and drew the blond's sea-colored eyes.

Demyx stared at him for a long moment, making Zexion believe that he too had been found out and his Boss's sullen look was from the thought of having to dispose his pet before he had originally planned to. "This isn't a dream or spell, is it?" He paused. "Did I really lock you up, Zexion?"

Zexion hesitated. Nodded.

His Boss's face crumpled. "I was afraid of that... Ya know, I think I'm in the wrong place. Not a dream, exactly, just not the right world. Do you know what I mean?" Zexion considered and nodded once more. "But you probably think I'm crazy, right?" To that the Illusionist kept his own counsel. "Yeah, thought so... All right, so that's it. I'll have to find that mirror and get back to my own world." The blond sighed and casted another sad look at the Illusionist. "I'll let you out before I go but, if I do that now.., you'll kill me." Demyx gave him one sad smile and disappeared in the swirling mass of darkness.

By the time his scent had left the room, Larxene teleported back in. Zexion turned his gaze onto her. He didn't wait for her to say a word, but nodded once. "This is our chance. Tell Xigbar- and Axel, if you can- and keep a watchout." He didn't need to explain why.

Larxene tapped a bar of the cage with one thin finger. "And as for this..?"

"Later. Let a few hours go by so he'll settle down in one spot. Then we make our move."

"Good." The woman hesitated and then stuck a hand through the cage to Zexion. He took it, silently looking back into those bright, sad green eyes. "This is for the others."

He said nothing- just nodded in agreement.

* * *

On Hollow Bastion, Demyx glanced over the completely still form before him. The water binds had been called off a while ago- they weren't necessary to hold onto an unconcious body, after all. He felt perfectly fine, if bored. Saix, though.. He was going to have to invest in a new robe and a better healthcare plan.

The blond wiped Duer-ik clean once more, this time on the blue-haired Nobody instead of himself, before allowing it to go. He sighed, glancing over the still body once more. It was like that day again, with not just Saix dead at his feet, but Xemnas, too. Boy, talk about a trip down Memory Lane.

His thoughts wandered off to the rest of his Organization underlings. How were they doing with him not leading them..?

"Maybe I should go and find out.." Demyx grinned, his mind already made up. He opened a portal and stepped inside. "I really should."

* * *

A little long and not so great... (nevermind just a touch dramatic at parts, no?) I apologize for not updating sooner- I had a cold streak for a while there. Anyways.. thanx for reading, reviewing, enjoying, all that. Catch ya later! 


	5. Chapter 5

Hola people! Um, I actually do have something to say this time.. Cover Me With Starlight, I left it out earlier (i completely forgot... opps) and as far as pairings go, I have several I was planning on putting in... As for a Zemyx.. I couldn't imagine pairing them up with anyone else. --

Anyways... Read, review (if your computer will let you, otherwise I understand completely) and mostly enjoy!!

Disclaimer: Same... same... same...

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Chapter Five: A Story for All 

Cloud found his gaze slipping away from him again, off the anxious faces of his friends and towards the couch, where Leon had been laid out. Bandages- dug out by Yuffie after she caught a glimpse of the state he was in- were wrapped tightly over the brunette's wounds. There wasn't many open spots of skin from the layers of cloth. A bright red splotch of blood was soaking through the bandages already; at some point during Aerith's and his trip back to headquarters Leon's cut had reopened.

Aerith had pulled up a chair next to the still body. An array of Potions and Hi-Potions, even a few Ethers and Elixirs, dotted the ground by her foot; everyone had pooled their items, but it seemed to be all in vain. The Potions and Hi-Potions seemed to slow the bleeding, Ethers had no noticeable effect, and the Elixirs were a fifty-fifty shot for whether they'd help or do nothing. As he watched, the auborn-haired girl picked up an opened Hi-Potion and lifted Leon's head gently to pour a small amount into his mouth.

He wished he could be the one next to the brunette, to change the bandages and hold his head. Most importantly, he didn't want to have to be the one to talk, to reveal the entire story. But he had been responsible for Leon getting hurt, even if he had not held the sword which had done the damage. Cloud could have intervened sooner- even before the brunette had left headquarters.

There was more to it than that, but he pushed those thoughts aside.

Cloud heard a rustle as someone shifted their position, and made himself tear his gaze off of Leon. He was seated at the round table that dominated a good portion of the front room. Yuffie had taken up a perch on the windowsill- her legs dangled down towards the floor, feet barely touching the ground. Tifa stood further away, next to a green chalkboard Merlin pulled up next to Cid's computer. Like the blond, her dark eyes flicked from Leon and then to the others in the room with her, and back again. Cid had claimed the swivel chair in front of his beloved computer. The mechanic's impatience rang out loudly with each tap his fingers made as they drummed against the desk space.

Just looking around the room at the familiar faces reminded the blond just how little he enjoyed speaking in public.

The front door opened with a bang, making those whose thoughts had been several worlds away jump two feet into the air. Merlin walked inside, using one sandal-ed foot to kick the wooden door shut once more. Although older in years than the others, the wizard's bright blue eyes held a spark of energy that few others could match, or ever hope to achieve even once in their lifetime. Now he put that spark to use, batting the light, blue-violet hat out of his eyes while taking in the scene.

The wizard turned an annoyed look at Cid when the latter spoke in his usual drawl, "Where did you go off to, ya loony wizard?"

"Loony? Why you-" Merlin's wand, clenched up in one of his fists, let off a string of sparks, "This 'loony' wizard had gone off to help a certain Keyblade Master and friends stop a Heartless invasion, unlike some people," his eyes flicked onoto VCloud and then back to the mechanic, "and then-"

"Um, Merlin..?" Aerith had left her post and now stood in between the front and back rooms. Her quiet voice had somehow broken through the wizard's tirade and, although he remained fuming, he listened. "Do you think you can heal Leon? I've tried, but..." Aerith bit her lower lip, obvoiusly worried, and glanced behind her.

Merlin's eyes followed hers, and then his feet. Cloud watched him walk by and towards the brunette. For a moment, the wizard stayed silent as he looked over Leon's condition and then sighed. That single rush of air brought in a wave of almost- could it be?- panic and fear- the only way to describe the frozen squeeze his heart experienced- over the blond.

"Look's like I'll have to make up a double batch of that potion," the wizard muttered under his breath. He turned towards small, but free, space and waved his wand once. Out of a puff of gray smoke appeared a large, metal cauldron- complete with its own stand over a self-contained fire. Another wave of the wand brought a battered old book flying off the bookcase set close to the door into his hands.

He started to flip through the pages as Cloud asked, "What potion?"

"An old but powerful one. Called the- ah! There it is!- the Celias Potion." The book was left floating in mid-air, opened to the correct page, as Merlin summoned a large, treasure-chest shaped trunk before him. The lock broke open itself, letting the curved top flop backwards. With a mumbled comment, the wizard sank slowly to one knee and started sifting through the trunk's contents. Clinks filled the room.

"It'll help Leon?"

The book had floated down to its owner's new height, close enough that the wizard could look at its pages and then renew his search in comfort and ease. "Wormwood... woodworm... no... Don't you have some story to tell us, Cloud? Er, ah- there we go... Heartwood- not wormwood... ugly stuff."

Cid snorted. "That means, 'I don't know.'"

"Cid-!" Yuffie's mouth, an amazing machine when talking, had flopped open in shock. She looked ready to rattle off more, but a restraining hand on her shoulder kept her quiet.

Unfortunately, Cloud noted, Aerith was looking directly at him even after she let the ninja go. "Please Cloud? How did you know?"

Of course, her question drew nearly everyone's attention- the wizard kept one ear tuned in, but otherwise he was entirely wrapped up in brewing the Celias Potion- was drawn onto him. Cloud sighed but nodded. Sora and the others had not gotten back yet, but they'd get the recap of the story.

Cloud leaned back into his seat, allowing himself one last look at the unconcious brunette- his skin looked a shade paler to Cloud; his hair made a deep contrast. Leon's eyes remained closed. The blond would have paid any price at that moment to have his friend open those icy blue eyes again. Sell his soul, his life, even join Sephiroth in the darkness- before taking a moment to ready himself.

He closed his eyes. Opened them. And began speaking.

* * *

Demyx reappeared in what he figured would be the equivalent of the Meeting/Throne Room in his world. (He certainly hoped that it was there- it could be a long, nasty trip to a rocky ground otherwise.) The room he ended up in was, fortunately devoid of other beings- plus a floor- and, unfortunately, held little resemblance to his memories. Instead of a circular room with thirteen built in 'chairs'- if you could call those platform monoliths 'chairs'- this Throne Room was rectangular in shape and contained one bona-fide throne; a silver thing with dark blue velvet lining and inlaid decorations. The path leading up to it was marked by the same colored carpet. Set up against the wall behind the throne was a protraiture of an extremely familiar face. 

Demyx stared up at himself, feeling a little more sick to the stomach with each passing second. Because of this doppelganger, this egotistical, evil twin of his, even Zexion- his sole 'friend', if the Cloaked Schemer could be called that- wanted to kill him. It was hard news to swallow, to say the least.

He knew he wasn't exactly well liked back at 'home', but even in his most clumsiest of moments, Zexion had stuck around, mostly because he refused to vacate a room despite the blond's presence. (Usually, it was something over 'well, it's my free time, and I'll spend it wherever I want to... although why you must barge into my room is a completely different matter entirely...') Unlike with any other member in the Organization, Demyx could sit on the end of the Schemer's bed, rattling whatever random thought came into his head, and Zexion would at least pretend to listen, even occassionally look over the edge of the book at him and ask a question- usually that question was, 'What?'

After Zexion's death, though, life at the Organization became unbearable. Even if someone else would have tried to put up with him, Demyx just couldn't find the strength or will to find them. It seemed pointless if Zexion wasn't the one listening. Even songwriting- one of favorite hobbies, outside of swimming- was beyond his ability.

Yet, even if Demyx had broken the other Nobody's most prized possession- and he probably did, at one point or another- he didn't think Zexion would immediately try to kill him. So whatever he had done to the Cloaked Schemer must have been beyond horrible, and that was what was tearing him up. Out of the people he would ever put on a Hit List- not that it even existed for him- Zexion would have never, ever been put onto it. The Schemer was far too.. important to him.

And now Demyx wouldn't get a chance to spend time with him again. The arrival had him spoked badly enough that the fact that Zexion- who he had known for a fact was dead, no questions there- was standing, alive and nearby, did not raise any further shock. It had seemed almost natural for the Schemer to be there, actually. Once ten minutes had gone by, wandering in the hallways to find a 'pet' that was hardly a 'pet' at all, and he had calmed down again, then the surprise hit him. Zexion.. alive! Praise whichever god listens to a Nobody!

Thoughts of spending the rest of time with Zexion- playing a few of his favorite songs, talking about anything, whatever- had occupied his mind up until Riku's outburst...

"I hate you," Demyx actually snarled at the protrait, even though the man pictured was himself, down to the very last detail. The pain he felt, the rage, twisted what heart was left for him. "I mean it this time! I really, really hate you- what did you do here?! What did you do to Zex-"

"Am I interrupting something?"

The end of his sentence finished in a surprised yelp. Not very dignifying for the ruler he was here, apparently, if the laughter meant anything. Demyx turned in the direction of the noise and nearly yelped again when he spotted the Keyblade Master... or whatever he was here, standing in front of the doors leading out of the room. The brunette's laughter tapered off. "Sorry, sir.. Just had to."

Demyx didn't say a word; he, unlike the doppelganger, was used to being laughed at. In truth, he hardly noticed- the knife in the kid's hand dripping blond onto the carpet, on the other hand, did catch his attention. Whose blood was that?

"I almost got 'im, but that annoying Keyblade Master came before I could slice his throat open." Sora wiped the knife clean on his pants and tucked it away, out of Demyx's sight. "Fortunately, I got to swipe the sword off of him. Poor Leon... weaponless again. What do you want to do with it- break it?" He swung something from around his back- it had been wrapped up and tied into a makeshift scabbard, and then strapped around the kid's body so that it rested diagonally across his back.

With nimble movements, Sora worked the knots apart and removed the wrapping, revealing a sword that even Demyx could tell must have been picked up from a junk heap and desperately scrubbed at to work the rust off. The blond took it into his hands when prompted to, and studied the hilt.

If this world's Leon was like the guy from Hollow Bastion, then this wasn't the sword he had spied on the brunette. He remembered watching the Keyblade Master's battle from afar with the other living members of the Organization; Xemnas had ordered a few Dusks and Samuria Nobodies to attack and break through the gate in the Bailey.

The gate had merely been an added worry for them- the real purpose had been to see how strong the Choosen One really was. Demyx recalled how Saix had asked the Superior whether the trial would serve the same purpose if the Keyblade Master was allowed help from the other man. Xemnas had waved the question off. 'Let him be- we know we have nothing to fear from him.' And so they watched and waited. Demyx could remember Leon swinging a blade that was far longer, rust-free and topped with a gun-shaped hilt.

Definitely not this piece of junk.

"Can I break it?"

Demyx considered his answer- technically and if he was extremely lucky enough to find the mirror again, the decision wouldn't matter at all- but the grip on the sword hilt tightened. He had gotten an idea that, for once, even Zexion would have said was a good one. "Sure thing. But first I need your help in finding something.."

The brunette's face, which had been smiling with joy, fell. Sora looked up at him, wary and curious at once. "Does it include someone's beating heart?"

"Not this time." The blond swallowed his unease when the kid's expression lost its smile once more, "This time, I want you to find me this mirror. It's uh, kinda big, oval and uh, has a mettalic frame... I think." There was very little he could remember of the mirror since he barely laid eyes on it. "Whadaya say? One mirror for a sword, plus I'll even try training that pet of your's some more. Well..?"

Sora's blue eyes stayed on his for an unnerving amount of time, but he soon nodded in agreement. "Okay... and if I just happen to wander past Leon or Roxas?" The question trailed off, leaving the end for him to figure out. Demyx considered- the suggestion meant a possible 'search' outside of the Castle, which meant more time spent here in this wacky universe, nevermind there was no guarantee that the mirror would be nearby- and forced himself to nod. Although he'd rather spend most of his and Sora's time on finding the mirror, he had to make the task seem believable to the brunette.

"Great- one mirror... coming up!" And before he could add anything else, the kid had whipped a knife out of its hiding place and was sauntering out of the room. Demyx waited until the footsteps coming from outside the room had faded to nothing before casting one last look around the room- no oval mirrors here- and leaving to go search the next room, whatever it was in this messed-up place.

* * *

He closed his eyes. Opened them. And started speaking, not entirely sure what would come out first. So many whirling memories and thoughts were going through his head, masking the words he thought he'd be speaking and jumbling them into a mess. It was that struggle, more than nervousness- although, with everyone listening in closely that was there, too- that had made him hesitate. "It really started about two days ago." Cloud plowed ahead, at first searching for the words he wanted to say, and then speaking with the shortest of breaks. The words just flew from his lips to their ears almost. 

"I sensed Sephiroth's presence in Hollow Bastion that morning. After the morning patrol I left and headed out of Hollow Bastion, straight for the Crystal Fissure. He appeared in the middle of the fissure, wearing that smirk on his face and holding Masamune in one hand."

"The fight didn't last long- Buster Sword was knocked out of my hands and I was thrown into the wall hard enough to crush whatever air I had in my lungs out. I couldn't move, even as Sephiroth knelt down next to me and placed his hand on me." Cloud paused, raising one of his own hands up to his left temple. "Here. I still don't know what he did, but it hurt like a- ..a lot. He said that it was a gift- and that it would come in handy soon." He could remember the tone of his rival's voice, how it seemed to carry that infernal smirk along. "And then he asked... He said, 'Leon is his name, right?'

"I told him to leave Leon out of this- it was between the two of us. (Or something like that, it doesn't matter.) Sephiroth just said that I would see for myself, and then he left.

"That night, I had a dream- or so I thought the next morning. I shoved it aside as a mind trick, triggered from what Sephiroth had said. But it happened. My dream- vision, whatever- showed Yuffie spraining her ankle on those stairs in the Market Square.. and it happened. In the same exact way.

"I put it aside as a coincedence. A wacky one, but nothing more."

Yuffie made a face at him. "Gee, thanks Cloud."

The blond hardly noticed- and even if he did, he would have just shrugged it off. The past, in his philosophy, was the past and the present was what mattered. "That night, there was another dream. That time it was about Sora, Donald and Goofy, running around as a lion, a gull and a turtle, and defeating a larger lion on top of a cliff. I didn't even think about that one again- it was just another extremely strange dream. A rather vivid one."

"But that happened just yesterday. That was Pride Rock in Simba's world!" Sora's mouth had flopped open in surprise at hearing about a previous journey... One he hadn't told anyone else in the room about yet. "We helped Simba take his rightful place as King of the Pridelands over Scar... how did you know-?"

Aerith shushed him.. and then realized that he, Donald and Goofy were standing in the doorway, each doing their share to bring a bloodied-up, unconcious man inside. The same thing happened to the others, with the exception of Merlin, as the trio- with a little bit of help from a very stunned Cid- brought the blue-haired man over to the backroom. Yuffie ran to get a spare blanket; she and Tifa laid it out on the ground so the Nobody- even as cut up and bloody as he was, the Organization uniform was still recognizable.

There were more than enough questions to fill the entire air of the room, but Merlin shook them off. "After Cloud's story, we'll tell ours." He looked over at the blond, meaning 'go ahead.'

The blond had watched the entire thing, but his thoughts were still stuck on what Sora had said, and what was the next part of his story. "So that happened, too... Wonderful," Cloud muttered to himself with a shake of his head. "If this keeps up I'm going to need a lot of therapy."

There was a loud splash as Merlin dropped something large into the cauldron. "That's easy to remedy. My cousin is a very good psychiatrist-"

"Anyways. Another night, another dream... I saw Leon in the Computer Room up at the Castle. He was fighting a member of that blasted Organization Thirteen.. I think. His attacker broke Lionheart and inflicted that wound on him. He was knocked onto the ground, nearly unconcious. Then-" Cloud broke off, unable to go on further. The images of the dream was swimming behind his eyes, bringing back the terror he had felt. "Then he died. He was killed- the.. the blood and the... laughing..." He shook his head, trying to get himself back into some form of control. It came... slowly. He could hear Sephiroth's words in his head, whispering, 'Leon is his name, right..?'

"I didn't want to risk it.. or believe it. But when I overheard Leon telling Aerith that he was going to check on the Castle, to make sure that the Heartless or Nobodies didn't get inside and to the computers, I decided to follow him... just in case. I too late to stop him from getting hurt but.. he's alive."

Cid asked, "And that Nobody guy?"

"Unfortunately, he got away." Cloud's hands clenched up- just thinking about it instantly provoked his temper. "I called here, Yuffie picked up, Aerith came by, and we brought Leon back. And that's it." He considered. "Well, actually, it isn't. I'm going to rip that son of a bitch apart when I come across him again."

* * *

Sorry it took awhile... and the story will get moving soon. I hope. j/k. Alter Demyx will be in the next chapter, and another member is going to show up. You'll see!

Er, thanks for reading and all... and please review. Feedback is awesome.


	6. Chapter 6

Hiya!! I have nothing else to say, so I'll let you get to the fun stuff- see ya.

Disclaimer: Don't own none of it.

* * *

Chapter Six:

As she had guessed, Larxene found the sniper of the Organization inside the Proof of Existence. She started up the center ramp up towards where Xigbar stood one the bottom level of the room. Her green eyes roamed over the interior, over the unlit and often smashed panels of the fallen members. They were arranged according to the member's numbers; Demyx's stood at the end of the ramp, then the Numbers two through five rested in a row, divided into groups of two, below. The middle row consisted of Numbers six through eleven, grouped into threes, and the bottom row were the remaining two, left by their lonesome after being seperated. In front of each panel was an identical floor tile, bearing the member's title along the bottom.

Otherwise, the room was rather unremarkable. The walls were the usual steel gray, and sloped first out at a diagonal, and then sharply in and upwards, until they met overhead in a curve. A flat light lit the perimeter- the real lighting came from the active and whole panels, casting the room with various hues. Larxene spied her panel on the end of the middle row, just off to Xigbar's right, spilling a dark violet onto the ground around the silohette of a kunai. Zexion's was to her left, lighting up the room with a green. Xigbar's stood towards the back, one row down below Demyx's, giving off a red light.

Larxene joined the sniper, coming up on his left (even though he had gotten used to relying on earing as well as sight, she knew from experience that he preferred people staying to his left so he can see them). Next to him, she barely came up to his shoulder- Xigbar wasn't originally the tallest member, but he certainly was now with the others being dead and all. In front of them both- his eye never trained off of it for a second- was Luxord's panel, broken down the center by one long crack in the glass, killing whatever light had shown from it before and obscuring the picture of a playing card and die.

"What did Zexion say?" Xigbar turned his good eye, a gold-yellow color, onto her.

"We're going for it." It was too much of good news to bother being quiet or discrete about it. If fate was going to allow the Teacher's Pet Assassin to overhear them, then it would do it whether she shouted or whispered the words. "Later tonight, too." She couldn't help but flash a smile up at him; as Zexion had correctly noted, a part of her desperately wanted to get the job done. And it cried out longer and louder as each day passed and so many of their comrades panels remained dark and broken into literal pieces.

Her smile slipped a little at the sniper's less than jubilant response. "You sure he's not going to chicken out again?"

"We shook on it."

"Really?"

Larxene smirked at the surprised look on his face. "You bet." His expression started to mimick hers as she continued talking, betraying the same feeling of hope they both felt. "Give it a few hours and we'll bust poor Rex out of his cage, and then we go after the bastard. One last showdown if nothing else, and I fully intend to make it something else. Right?"

He nodded. "I hear ya loud and clear, Larx'."

"Exactly..." The conversation lapsed into silence, each thinking their own thoughts, no matter how similiar they were. Larxene finally broke the quiet, remembering the second part of her 'mission.' "You wouldn't happen to know where Axel is, would you?"

Xigbar shook his head, cutting off the short bark of laughter in order to answer verbally. "Not at all. That guy has made his business to keep to himself ever since... you know. Even if I did come across him today- which I didn't, by the way- he wouldn't be in that same spot anymore. Why- is he helping?"

"I don't know. He'll probably just stay out of the way."

"Zexion wanted to rope him in too, huh?"

Larxene shrugged. Wouldn't know, wouldn't care, was what that roll of her shoulders meant. "You know Zexion- meticulous to the most insignificant of details. Anyways, I'm off to sharpen and polish my kunai-" The knives weren't dull or rusting at all, it was just a ritual she did before any major mission, "-and I will see you guys later." With that all done, she turned back the way she had come and opened a portal for her room.

The smoke died away once she had gone, leaving the sniper on his own in the Proof of Existence. Xigbar's grin started to fade as his gaze fell back onto Luxord's panel and tomb. Ever since the Gambler of Fate's death, Xigbar had come up to this room- the graveyard, by that point- and spent countless amount of time there. Call him crazy, but there were days he'd spend the majority of which holding a conversation with Luxord- or his voice in the sniper's head. It was no where's near to the same thing as seeing Luxord and actually speaking with him, of playing a poker game or bar hopping through Port Royal with his company, but it provided Xigbar with a little bit of comfort.

And a lot of thoughts covering vengeance.

He reached one hand into his cloak pocket, pulling out a deck of cards. He could remember when Luxord had handed them over to him, explaining the unexpected gift in the off-hand matter that the two generally traded back and forth when invitations and such were concerned. At first he had said they were for practicing purpose- Xigbar's game of poker, nevermind other card games- needed some serious polishing. After a while though, Luxord had finally admitted, 'So I'm always playing cards with you.'

At that, Xigbar had been left speechless, but he had split ways with the blond with a smile on his face.

But that was then and this was now. Luxord was gone in the way that no amount of wishing and prayers could ever hope to return. Xigbar turned his gaze off the cards and he knelt down. "I know you told me to hold onto these, Lux'... and believe me, I'd rather hold onto them for the rest of eternity. Consider this a promise- once Demyx is dead and gone, nothing but whisps of smoke in the wind, then I'll be back for these. If I'm still alive, anyways.. Even if I don't, there's no way I could forget you." He got back up to his feet, the deck of cards left behind at the base of the panel, "You're with me no matter what happens, or where I end up.. You're... in my heart. Forever."

He wished he could hear Luxord's reply to that, but of course dead was dead. The dead couldn't talk, despite what snatches the mind may bring up again.

Xigbar hesitated, then turned away from the gravestone- that was they all really were, gravestones ready to happen or already in practice- and walked slowly out of the room. He could have stayed longer, said more too, but it wasn't necessary. Luxord knew, even if he wasn't around for him to say it.

* * *

Demyx reappeared in the Proof of Existence- if such a thing actually existed in this silly little version of his own Empire. He was flattered to find it there, with nearly the same design as the one back Home. Good minds think alike, apparently. All the way from building designs, uniform styles- they were nearly alike... one or two details were different and Demyx planned on bringing that up with the 'Superior'- and that infuriating Numbers. After 'One' it hardly mattered anymore.

'I'll have to remember this when I meet their leader,' he thought to himself as he wandered up the ramp. He headed straight for the end, curious as to who had snagged the role. His blue-green eyes flicked around at the other panels, taking a quick count as to the members dead and alive. (He'd check that out more carefully soon.) Interesting...

His boots came to a stop in front of the top panel. Demyx's smirk grew. "Xemnas. I should've known... Hmm.. so who's your number Two?" The blond shuffled backwards and done the second row. He went along reading the panels' labels, figuring out who was who and checking the picture of the weapon when the name stumped him.

"The Freeshooter.. Xigbar. Whirlwind Lancer- Number Three, Xaldin? Good for you. The Chilly Academic- how original, Vexen." And so on, until the blond came across Number Six and his personal favorite, The Cloaked Schemer. The panel had not only gone dim- that fact in itself was infuriating- but it had been shattered beyond recognition; only the name was visible.

Demyx's hands clenched into fists. Whoever had done this blasphemous act would pay dearly. As for the person who had actually murdered the gorgeous Zexion was going to wish that he -or she- had died at birth. Rather, they would be praying for death to come and save them.

Not that it would, of course. Death was far too kind of a fate.

He barely looked through the others- it didn't seem much like an Organization without the Cloaked Schemer, anyways. In fact... how had this one survived without him in control and Zexion alive? Obviously some changes needed to be done. Starting with who was boss.

Demyx came to a stop again, right back from where his wandering had really started with Xemnas's panel. His mind was going over the last few hours, recalling all he had gone through up until that point. This was a dismal place, as he came to realize. Not only was he not the Emperor of the worlds, but he wasn't even in control of the Organization. Even worse, Zexion was dead. Worse than that, he didn't know who to torture and destroy for it.

Fortunately, all those problems were easily solved.

It had been so easy to take down the system once, surely it could only be easier now.

Demyx summoned Duer-ik and took a step back from Xemnas's panel. He considered for a moment, and then went to work on it- kicking the screen into just shards of glass, severing parts of the metal frame into no more than wire, and so on. The work took him around the room, destroying the rest of the panels, lit or unlit alike, and even the room itself. By the time he was finished, it all looked as if a tornado had been set loose inside. Only Zexion's panel, what was left of it, was untouched.

The blond stood in the middle of the mess, not even noticing the crunches his boots made with every step he took over the glass and bits of metal left lying around. He let Duer-ik go; his work was done here, it was time to get going. He teleported up to where his office would be if he was the one in control, and was extremely pleased to find such a room where he appeared, if not decorated or designed to his particular style.

Well, that could be fixed.

The room was empty, fortunately. Demyx ignored the multiple desk drawers and the sole cabinet in the room in favor of rifling through the cyberfiles of the computer he spied on 'The Superior's' desk. Xemnas, he knew, was far too confident in his own abilities and intelligence to bother with writing his plans done, or even storing them away on a disk, but he was also far too paranoid to let the Proof of Existence panels to be the only outward indication if an Organization member was still alive.

Or even if they were where he had sent them.

He found what he was looking for on his third try. The file had been hidden in a larger folder labeled 'Expenses'. "Idiot," Demyx muttered, scrolling through the list of members. Like the panels, those who were no longer around were grayed out. This time they didn't interest him at all. "Who to start with... hmmm... Let's find out where you are, Xaldin."

The blond clicked on the Whirlwind Lancer's link. The screen went dark, becoming a rough map of the location of each world. A white dot blinked on and off on the world titled, 'Beast's Castle'. He followed the path with another click of the mouse, coming up with a more finely done layout of the world's land itself. Another click on the castle gave him his target's exact location inside.

He followed the same procedure for the others, storing away where they currently were into his memory. When he was finished, Demyx gleefully ex-ed out of the files, leaving the computer as it had been.

With Xemnas atop the Alter of Naught and every other member outside of the Castle itself entirely, he didn't have anyone to worry about happening upon him any time soon. At least, no one that stood much of a threat anyways. Demyx leaned back in the well-cushioned chair, glancing up at the smooth and completely white wall behind him. He tried to imagine a portrait of himself mounted up in the center- a rendition of himself standing in the foreground of a destroyed city, flames reaching high into the sky behind him, all buildings mere rubble, blood pooling and drying on the streets- and smiled. It would look perfect.

* * *

Once Cloud finished speaking, silence descended upon the group, with the exception of the bubbling from the cauldron. Merlin hovered over it, occassionally tossing in different powders or other bits of ingredients from the floating jars next to him.

It took Yuffie to break the quiet. "So that explains Leon... what about him?" She pointed down at the unconcious Nobody.

"Oh for crying out loud-!" There was a loud hiss as the liquid inside the cauldron spilled out over the top from the over-enthusiastic spoon stirring the contents by itself. Merlin grabbed onto its handle, forcing it to slow down. His blue eyes flicked over towards Sora, who had taken a seat on the floor with Donald and Goofy while Cloud had wrapped up the story. "Could you fill them in, Sora? I'm a bit busy- you lousy spoon!!"

For once, Cid said nothing- did not even snicker at the display, much like he would have any other day before going to lend a hand. The troubled and yet curious look in his eyes echoed those in the group who had yet to hear.

The brunette nodded. He stated simply, "When we headed back here, Goofy spotted him lying on the ground and out cold. Merlin went on ahead to whip up a potion, and we followed behind with him." He shrugged. "That's it."

"But... what happened to him?" Yuffie asked. The Keyblade Master could only shake his head and shrug, meaning 'Who knew?'

Cloud glared down at the Nobody with obvious disgust and hatred. "Was there any reason you decided to help him?"

"He was hurt. We couldn't just leave him there to die," Sora retorted. The other blond just rolled his eyes. It was clear he wasn't in favor of the man's presence, but then again, who was?

The wizard carefully let the spoon handle go, fixing Cloud with his gaze. "Perhaps he could help us with this other member, or on the Organization itself."

Another eye roll. "Just because we gave him some potion?"

"Of course."

"You must be joking."

Merlin just shook his head, muttering to himself. He waved his wand through the air and the spoon fell unmoving against the side of the cauldron. "The Celias Potion is done, so why don't we just find out?" The wizard turned towards Aerith- could you help me?"

"I'll do it," Cloud was out of his seat and moving to join the wizard by the cauldron and the two unconcious men before Aerith had even taken one step. The wizard wordlessly scooped a ladel full of the potion into a cup and handed it to the blond, and scooped up another one. The last one he took over to the Nobody and knelt down next to him, calmly lifting the man's head and pouring the liquid into the latter's mouth.

Cloud took a little longer. It was hard for him to remember to move, let alone breathe, when he was that close to Leon. It was a rare moment, to say the least and he liked to remember it. The set composure of the brunette's face, the fall of his hair over the cushion... All of it. He traced his free hand past Leon's face and through his hair- the touch of it running past his fingers was heaven- and lifted the brunette's head up slightly. His lips had parted slightly all on their own, Cloud ran a finger lightly over them before opening them wider.

Someday he was going to kiss those perfect curves of lips, and perhaps never let them go.

For now, though, the blond placed the edge of the cup gently against Leon's mouth and slowly tipped the liquid into his mouth. He was glad to see him swallowing- Leon wasn't so far under anymore. Cloud set his head back down gently, reluctantly taking his hand back from behind the brunette's head.

There was a gargled cry and a crash as Merlin was flung back and landed heavily onto the wooden floor with a surprised yell. The blue-haired Nobody had woken up- his eyes were wide open, nearly glowing yellow. The Potion however, had done absolutely nothing to heal his wounds, his movements only reopened them, now smearing fresh blood on the floor.

"Oh my-" Merlin's wand had been knocked from his hand and had landed, fortunately, by one sandaled foot. He scrambled for it as Cid and Goofy- the only two who weren't immediately thrown off by the Nobody's thrashing- tried to hold the man down. Cid was elbowed in the stomach and fell back onto the ground with an 'oof!'. Goofy was kicked into and then through the table Cloud had been sitting at just minutes ago.

The wizard snatched the wand up and aimed it the Nobody. "Reschri!" Golden lines popped up from the ground around his target and then flew over him, across his legs, chest, and neck. They lost their glow, forming sturdy chains to restrict his movements to mere twitches. "Now that's better.."

Cloud calmly stood up from the edge of the couch and took the Buster Sword into one hand. He walked slowly over to the twitching Organization member and placed one edge of the sword against his neck. "Don't move."

The bright yellow eyes snapped up towards him, casting a wave of fury up to the blond. Cloud didn't even blink and just applied a slight pressure against the man's neck. The threat did the trick- the Nobody stopped moving, instaed falling as limp as before. His eyes lost their glow, and became an unreadable gold. "Where am I?" The words sounded as if it was painful for him to speak.

Cloud moved Buster Sword off of the man's neck, but kept it out, just in case if it would be needed again. "Hollow Bastion. You're alive right now thanks to a new friend of yours- maybe you can answer some questions for us?"

"You're that... Keyblade Master's friend."

"One of them," Cloud agreed amiably enough. His blue eyes flicked over towards Merlin. "So much for him helping purely out of gratitude. You can ask all you want, I doubt he'll answer any of them."

Merlin waved him off as he got back up to his feet and shuffled over towards the Nobody. "What's your name?" he asked. His question was greeted with silence. The wizard sighed and rubbed one temple with a wrinkled hand. "Is it really so terrible to tell us what your name is? Uh, Sora-?"

The brunette had been inching closer since the Nobody had woken up. There was something very familiar about the man, yet every time he tried to think, or remember, what it was exactly, it slipped away. In front of everyone else, and without any idea of what he was doing himself, Sora knelt down next to him and asked softly, "Saix... did another member do this to you?" He sensed their shock- could see a bit of it in Saix's eyes- and knew there would be questions later, with no answers to them.

"You remember..?"

Sora blinked, confused, and shook his head. A smirk passed briefly over the Nobody's face, and was replaced by perfect, emotionless mask. Saix's eyes left the brunette's and closed. "You're not going to get another word out of me." He shut his mouth as well, refusing so much to even look at the next person who spoke. After a minute had gone by, Sora realized that Saix had fallen asleep, or perhaps unconcious again, and quietly informed the others to not even bother.

He sighed. "Now what?" His question wasn't answered, and he wasn't all that surprised. They couldn't let him go, even if he wasn't their enemy, not even when the Celias Potion had yet to kick in and do its job. The smears of blood were starting to become mini-puddles, the sight of which brought memories of finding Saix's unconcious body lying in a decent-sized pool of blood to Sora's mind. Just how much blood could a person- or a Nobody in this case- lose before kicking the bucket? He flinched and scampered back up to his feet. "I don't think the potion's working on him.."

"It will in a minute- it woke him up, didn't it?" Merlin reassured him with a dismissive wave of the hand. "Hmm... we're going to need a lot of bandages.. Yuffie-?"

From the back of the room, grabbing everyone's attention- except for the ninja, who had hurried off to fetch the bandages as per Merlin's request- came Cloud's semi-announcement. He was quiet, and yet obvious joy rang out in his words. "Hey- Leon's waking up."

* * *

And I'll halt there. Sorry for the long wait... and etc. Anyways, thanx for reading, hope you enjoyed it! (Now go ahead and review... come on.. I know you want to..! j/k) 


	7. Chapter 7

I'm sorry for the wait again... Anyways, enjoy! Thanx!

Disclaimer: Nada, no, nope, zilch... etc... etc...

Chapter Seven:

* * *

Cloud slung an arm around the brunette as the latter tried to sit up. The room was silent, it was as if no one dared to even breathe. Leon swung his blue eyes around, resting for the briefest of moments- in Cloud's opinion- on the blond holding him. All too soon he looked away.

"What did I miss..?" The sound of Leon's voice was a painful reminder to Cloud of what the brunette had gone through. It was the throaty croak of a person inching towards death instead of the velvety smoothness he always delighted in hearing.

The group filled him in on the recent events. Cloud didn't say a word; he was content on holding the brunette up, content to have those blue eyes flicker his way (even though the subject raised, namely his new ability and saving Leon's life, made him almost embarrassed). Cloud felt Leon shudder slightly and he tightened his grip around the brunette. No one else noticed, and somehow that only made it more enjoyable.

"Organization Thirteen just made themselves an even bigger priority... And Sephiroth," Leon stated calmly, his eyes meeting Cloud's. The blond winced, but nodded in silent agreement. "Does anyone know where he went?"

Merlin shook his head. "Unfortunately, no. And our guest is a little... reluctant to speak on the matter, whether he knows or not." The wizard sighed and glanced out the window, where normal life went on without a care. It was all so fragile- with one disaster, it all could be destroyed. "We should do a search of the city. Aerith, will you stay here with Leon and, whatshisname?, Saix?"

The girl nodded and demurely added, "Of course." At the same time, Cloud felt Leon push himself up straighter, and saw the brunette's eyes harden in defiance.

"I'm not staying here like some-"

Cloud scowled. "You need your rest, Leon-!" He stopped himself from saying anything else, since 'you nearly died today' would only get stuck in his throat and threaten to crumble what little self-composure he had right then. He didn't avert his eyes or take back what he said when the brunette's gaze settled on his own blue eyes. Leon was mistaken if he thought that Cloud would back down on the matter...

"Now, now, Leon," Merlin's voice took the blue eyes off of Cloud, "I was just thinking that you _and_ Aerith could watch after our guest... Just in case if he chose to wake up and try running off on us- or worse. Better odds, no?" The wizard looked over his glasses at the brunette; Cloud saw the hidden message in the old man's eyes. There was no arguing over the matter as far as the wizard was concerned.

Leon's eyes narrowed, but he finally nodded, much to Cloud's relief.

"Good. Now... how to split us up.." Merlin swung his gaze around the room, taking account of who was present. "Cid, Yuffie- you are responsible for the Market Square. Tiffa and Cloud will search through the Bailey up to the Postern. I will-"

"Wait, Merlin-" Sora interrupted the wizard's task-giving. "What about us?" he gestured behind him to Goofy and Donald; all three were obviously ready to accept whatever mission was given to them in this mess.

But the wizard shook his head. "You three have to check the other worlds and make sure Organization Thirteen isn't interferring in the other worlds. When you are done, come back.., but do not neglect those duties, Sora! We have one rogue Nobody on this world- not the approaching destruction of the worlds if the Heartless and the Organization was allowed to run loose."

The brunette winced at the reprimand, but he nodded. "..Yeah, okay.."

"Good. Now, where was I? Oh yes- I'll search around in the lower part of the city and meet up with Tiffa and Cloud at the Postern. Then we'll go down and meet Cid and Yuffie in the center of the market, share any findings, come back here and take stock of our options." Merlin smiled to himself, rubbing his hands together. "Any objections?"

_Could I just stay here instead of Aerith? _Cloud kept that thought solely to himself and forced himself to think on what the wizard had asked them to. Leon would be fine here- Aerith was a healer, and it was rather doubtful that Saix would wake up any time soon if his wounds didn't heal- Yuffie and Cid were the most often seen in the public (save Aerith) so they would be able to pick up on more useful information than the others, Merlin was a capable magic-user who's powers made a swordmaster look pathetic, and Tiffa and himself were a good fighting team for anything they may encounter near Villain's Vale and the Postern. It would do.

No one found any problems with the arrangement. Sora still didn't look that willingly to leave right away- it took a briefer, gentler reminder from the wizard to get him to board the gummi ship behind Goofy and Donald- but everyone else headed off without complaint. Cid and Yuffie went first, then Merlin. Tiffa stood stood next to the doorway, speaking in quiet tones with Aerith as she waited for her partner.

Cloud knew he had to get going, but he could't bring himself to let go of the brunette just yet. He twisted his gaze into the blue eyes of the wounded man- but still alive, thank the Heart of the Worlds- and curled his mouth up into a small smile. "We won't keep you waiting long, Leon... And if I come across that son of a bitch-"

His words were cut off as Leon's hand clenched around his arm. "Watch yourself." Leon's eyes burned into the blond's, forcing the latter to take his words seriously. He let the blond's arm go and pitched his voice lower as he added, "After you come back, we can hunt down Sephiroth together... get some answers-.."

For a moment, Cloud said nothing in return. Normally he searched for Sephiroth on his own- the silver haired swordsman seemed to prefer appearing when the blond was by himself- but Leon was offering to help him, Leon was volunteering to his companion on an otherwise lonely quest... "As soon as I get back we'll go," Cloud promised seriously, drawing the brunette's blue eyes onto him once more.

"Then get going." At his orders, Cloud slowly let the brunette go, making sure that he was fine without any support. He forced himself to stand up as well, pausing only once as Leon added, "And Cloud? I did mean it- be careful."

The blond glanced back and smiled at him. Cloud said nothing- there was nothing to say- and walked over to meet Tiffa at the door. He glanced between her and Aerith, and finally back to Tiffa. "Let's go." The dark-haired woman nodded and stepped out into the late afternoon light with Cloud right behind her. He looked back over his shoulder once, hoping he'd see Leon standing in the window- already recovering from his wound- but only saw Aerith, waving once as a farewell. He turned away, hurrying forwards to catch up with Tiffa again. _Soon... _

* * *

The Courtyard directly outside of the grand castle was as dark and throw into neglect and disuse just as the castle had been. Vines had crawled up from their gardens- once carefully kept clear of weeds, now wild with dead vegetation and flowerless, prickly underbrush- along the slope of the marble staircase to the marble walls of the castle itself. The statues of gargoyles were slowly rotting and becoming entangled in the vines as well, becoming mere blobs of gray and dull green set in a ring at the middle of the courtyard. An old tree in each corner of the space stood crooked and warped, their leaves scattered around their base and blown around with every whim of the wind.

The front gate and bridge, Xaldin knew, was a much more scenic place to teleport to- if the Castle itself was currently off limits, that is- but there was little he could do about it. His boots settled on the dirty, cracked stones with barely audible clunks as the wind he controlled settled to a calm breeze around him. He swiped his braided hair back out of his face and started forwards towards the stairs.

This was his last chance to win the Beast over for the Organization- Xemnas had made that point clearly just a few seconds ago. If he failed again in this 'private crusade', to quote the Superior directly, then he would be given a more 'manageable' mission involving something more related to their overall goal. Fortunately, he had just the plan to 'win'- not a direct quote this time- the Beast over for good.

Xalden started up the staircase, briefly running over the plan he had formed in his mind once more. He knew where the rose was located, and as soon as Beast and his lady friend, Belle, were in the ballroom, then he would get the chance to steal the rose...

The breath in his chest flew out in a startled whoosh as someone's foot connected with his chest in a well-executed kick. He was flung backwards, falling into air he controlled on a mere whims, and landing on the bottom four steps. His momentum rolled him onto flat ground; his head connected solidly with the ground, bringing bright flashes of light across his vision of the dark sky above.

_What..?_ Xaldin shook his head, wincing and moaning in pain as the thudding got worse. He breathed in- and coughed out blood. His chest was on fire, along with an arm, leg and the back of his head. His vision was slowly clearing- he could now see his attacker walking slowly down the steps and towards him. "D-Demyx?!" _My voice..._

The familiar blond's eyes scanned over him, silently appraising his wounds. Xaldin felt the urge to rip the boy's throat out and tear his body to itty-bitty shreds that even Zexion- if the latter was still alive, anyways- wouldn't be able to search what was left of him out again. "What a shame the fall didn't break your neck... Oh well." The blond shrugged, an infuriating smirk on his face.

"You... _bastard_-!" Xaldin's anger got the better of him. Despite the pain, he moved to push himself up to his feet- preferably summoning his lances afterwards and so on from there- but Demyx's foot slammed into his side, throwing the Whirlwind Lancer sideways. Xaldin heard the crack of a rib and barely held back a shriek of pain.

"Talk about being stubborn... Saix could take some notes from you, Xaldin." He heard the song of a sword being drawn- when did Demyx get a sword?!- after he stopped speaking. "I'll give _you _a chance, however. Come, Xaldy. Stand and fight me." The challenge he had in his voice would have been described, even by the lance-weilding Nobody, as brave at best, if it wasn't for the laughter at the end of it.

"Son of a..." He couldn't say anything else- the pain was too much, the taste of blood in his mouth too toxic that the words died before being spoken. How had Demyx gotten so strong so quickly? And psychotic to boot.

"Did you have something to say to me, Xaldin? Don't hold back- you weren't so restrained the last time you saw Death coming."

Xaldin felt the cold point of metal touching his neck; his eyes traced upwards along the blade and hilt, past the hand that held it and so on till he was looking in Demyx's sea-blue eyes. He was still smirking, but the glint in his eyes was a warning.

"Well..?"

For the first time in his life- or nonlife, according to some who had less than approving opinions on Nobodies- Xaldin felt a twinge of fear, of the cold realization that death really was coming, that he had only seen in the eyes of his victims before. Fear had never touched himself but now it would envelop him.

He kept his mouth shut- as if he would be able to hurl a curse up into the boy's face right then- and tried not to wince as Demyx knelt down next to him and reached down with his other hand, grabbing onto the front of his cloak. He was pulled upwards- the sword's blade merely sliced across his skin. Demyx was thoughtful enough to shift the point aside slightly- and this time he couldn't help but cough out a moan in pain.

"No fight left in you, Xaldin?" Demyx nearly whispered. "Well, Xemnas was the one in charge in this... dimension, I guess. And I almost thought he would do at least a passable job in toughening the Organization up."

Xaldin frowned. "What... are you... talking... about?" It was getting harder to speak, much less breathe.

The sea-blue eyes looked down at him, blank and devoid of any emotion. "I just have one last question for you, Xaldin. I don't think that you would... fit in anymore." He heard the musical chime of the sword's metal moving and that twinge of fear came back, and it stayed. Demyx's eyes never left him. "Did you, Whirlwind Lancer, murder my Zexion?"

_Is that what this is about?!_ Perhaps he would get out of this then. Relief flooded over Xaldin- he shook his head, at first slowly and then quicker. It didn't matter that it was Demyx he was being threatened by, but that he might get out.

"Hmmm... Lucky you." Xaldin might have smiled, but the rip and tearing of pain crashing into and through his chest only made him choke and gasp. He thought he heard someone shouting, screaming 'NO!' maybe, but he could have been wrong. The world was darkening too quickly, his body becoming numb to the pain and everything else save the cold stone ground below him.

It was over.

* * *

"Are you feeling any better, Leon?"

The brunette turned his gaze off of the window and towards the auborn-haired woman now sitting at the table. Aerith's kind eyes merely looked back at him, not betraying any trace of any inner motive for asking. "I'm fine," Leon stated flatly, turning away again. He found himself gazing out of the window again- too far away that he couldn't really get a good look outside sitting on the bed still- wondering where and how Cloud was faring.

The blond was a fine swordsman- an equal to any other who used a blade as their weapon of choice- but he couldn't help but worry. The pain in his chest, even after the potion had started to heal it, was enough of a justification for him. Cloud had saved his life- Leon would be devastated if that turn to walk out of the door was the last he saw of the blue-eyed blond.

"Would you like some tea, or food or anything?"

Leon closed his eyes and sighed. "No, Aerith... I'm fine." He could feel her gaze on him, studying him, maybe even wondering if he was going to faint or fall apart from exhaustion. "Actually, I think I'll go get something to do." He didn't generally stay in the cottage for long periods of time- there were more than enough Heartless to train on and other things to do in Hollow Bastion- but what personal items he didn't bring with him was kept in the room he and Cloud shared. (That was how he knew that Cloud liked Heavy Metal music- and boxers.)

He saw concern in Aerith's eyes as he swung his legs over and stumbled up to his feet. "I can get it for you, Leon-"

"I'm fine." The brunette walked around her, not necessarily on steady feet, heading straight for the stairs towards the corner. He didn't let it show on his face, but he was relieved when he was able to hold himself up with the banister.

"Right- and if I hear a thud, does that mean you're just taking a nap?"

Leon started up the steps slowly. "Of course." He ignored her reply, focus entirely on making sure his next step would take him one stair upwards. If Aerith didn't think he'd be able to move around the place on his own, there was no way he'd be allowed to leave with Cloud when they went after Sephiroth.

The upstairs hallway was dark, but enough light filtered in from under the closed doors and from the level below that navigation was possible. Leon kept one hand on the wall as he took a turn to the right and walked forward. Their room was located towards the end of the corridor, past Tiffa and Yuffie's shared room, and right across from the 'barely-larger-than-a-closet' nook Aerith stayed in.

He had only brought up the topic of searching down Sephiroth out of lack of anything else. He had no idea what answers the man could or would provide them, but it was the one thing Leon knew that Cloud did consistently. Anything else could have been written off later with an excuse or would have just been plain ridiculous- taking a walk, for instance, would have been pointless since neither were very big talkers.

But Cloud had agreed- so that had to be encouraging... Perhaps next time, or so Leon hoped, they'd find something else to do together.

Leon paused outside of the last door, surprised to find himself having to catch his breath. _Oh for crying out loud!_ The brunette seized the doorknob, turned it, and opened the door. The room inside was neatly down and comfortably set. One window was set into the far wall, facing the patch of the city directly outside the home. The beds were set on either side of the small room, but their personal things- what little there were- tended to mix all over the place. Leon ignored all of those, and forced himself to get to the window.

Aerith wouldn't stop watching him if he had stayed downstairs, certainly not if he had gotten up and started gazing out the window- she'd probably suggest he sit in the chair every few seconds- but she couldn't see him from downstairs. He leaned against the windowsill, pulling the cord to drag the blinds upwards. Cloud was out there somewhere, and he intended to keep his eyes peeled for him when he did.

And then they'd be spending time on their own at last..

* * *

Aerith waited, ears tuned for the smallest of sounds, for the thud or crash or whatever noise would result from Leon collapsing. She knew he preferred to remain the tough, silent one in front of everyone's eyes, but he was still hurting from the entire morning ordeal. It was just in her nature to be the worry-wart.

A low groan nearly made her shriek. Aerith whirled on her feet, eyes landing on the source of the sound- the Nobody, Saix. She hesitated, but slowly made her feet move closer to the still form. She could see that the blue-haired man was in no condition to move about as Leon was- his skin had a waxy look to it, a close color to yellow than anything else. His breathing came in little hitches, and his eyes were scrunched up. Aerith watched him a moment longer, thinking he was still sleeping, when Saix opened his eyes at last. They wavered on the patch of ceiling above him, slowly moving and then focusing on her face.

"Xem...nas..?" His voice came in a whistling whisper through thin, barely moving lips. Aerith had to move closer to him and kneel on the ground just to hear what he was saying. "...nas.."

"What is it?"

The Nobody twitched, clearly in pain once more. Aerith glanced over her shoulder at the cauldron, but she knew that if anything remained, it had lost its healing properties already. Nor did she have any Potions or Elixirs left to use. _Wasn't the Celias Potion supposed to heal him completely?_ Aerith shook off the thought and ducked closer down to hear his words once more. "Dem..yx.."

"Dem-ix?"

He nodded. "Be care...ful.., Xem...nas."

"Of.. of Demyx?"

Saix didn't say or do anything to reply to her last question. His breath caught in his throat and he started coughing. Badly. The Nobody twisted away from her, curling up slightly as the spasms wracked his body. She saw blood dot the floor and scampered up to her feet. "S-Saix?" Naturally, he didn't hear her. The spasms only got worse, the coughing as well. She thought she heard a door bang open from upstairs, and someone hurrying in uneven steps along the hallway, but before that, Saix exploded in a swirling cloud of dark smoke.

* * *

I'm sooooo sorry about the ridiculous wait. Thanks for reading, though-! 


	8. Chapter 8

*I swear... I heart all of you reading this. Seriously. Thanks.*

Disclaimer: Nada, nada, nada, nada, etc.... etc...

Chapter Eight:

* * *

The hand was Leon's- strong, solid, her life preserver in this sea- and she held onto it tightly as he pulled her up. He led her over to the far side of the room, just in time.

Her knees buckled; her legs felt like rubber stuck in an earthquake. Aerith landed on the couch, amazed at her shaking hands, the waterfalls streaming down her face. She bit her lip. Where had Leon gone? Her hands were empty- wasn't she holding his a second ago?-

"Here." A glass was shoved into her hands. "Drink some. Slowly." Aerith did as she was told, relishing the coolness of the water slipping down her throat, and watched Leon as he silently limped for a chair and brought it back. A flicker of pain showed in his eyes as he sat down. He leaned forward, and asked, no, ordered, "Tell me what happened."

* * *

"NOOOO!!!" Sora heard the screaming denial rush out through his own lips. His eyes watched in horror as the blond swung the sword down; the blade glinted just before it cut, and then a burst of smoke, rushing upwards around the two nobodies in a twisting, furious pillar, obscured everything else.

His feet began running, propelling him forward. Left behind, Donald squawked out his name, calling him back. "Sora-!"

It was too late. The brunette spied a flash of blue streak towards him along the ground; it curled around his feet and he fell, teeth clapping down hard as his chin hit the stones. The keyblade was jarred out of his grip- it spun off to the side. Sora cried out in surprise when he was suddenly airborne- the snake of water lifted him up and slung him back towards Donald and Goofy like a whip; pain flared up in his back and rear at the rough landing.

"Sora, are you all right?" Donald asked. With a flick of his wrist, Cure circled around him, healing the cuts and bruises. The brunette didn't answer, didn't get the chance to; he kept his gaze straightforward.

The smoke had begun to clear by then, revealing the tall blond they had seen from before. The sword was still held tight in one of his hands by his side. A crafty smile was etched over his face, but something other than joy glinted in the stone blue eyes. "Ah, Sora- how nice to see you again," the blond spoke easily, as if the last bits of smoke wafting in the breeze in front of him hadn't been a person seconds ago. "Hmm… and the mouse's lackeys are here too."

"Lackeys?!" Goofy held Donald back, even as the wizard struggled and shed feathers in order to be set free.

Sora pushed himself up to his feet, anger coursing through him. "You- you're not the real Demyx! Who are you, and what happened to him?" He had no idea how he knew any of what had just flown out of his mouth, and it certainly surprised him. But it was right, somehow, so he let it be.

"What a shame..," Demyx sighed. Sora started slightly in surprise as the imposter's empty hand filled with brilliant white light. The keyblade materialized seconds later, and he held up for inspection. "I had been hoping that you of all people, Sora, would have been spared these radical changes… I could have lived with your choice of leaving those two… buffoons, alive, but for you to have the keyblade..," In another flash of light, the blade left Demyx's hands; Sora clamped down over the familiar handle out of pure reflex, keeping his eyes solely on the blond. "That, dear friend, happens to be a crime punishable by death."

"W-what?" Sora gasped. _Am I really hearing this?!_

"Of course- don't you know the legend between these two blades?" He held his sword up for their inspection. After a few minutes, he lowered it again, a thoughtful expression now on his face. "Hmm… I wonder- if you're the Keyblade Master here, than does that mean Roxas would be the Nobody? Ha! No, that's simply hilarious!"

_Roxas? _

Sora unclenched his teeth, managing out, "Where is the real Demyx?"

"Hmph. That Demyx," the blue eyes hardened, darkening over into navy onyx, "is dead. You have me to deal with, Sora, and I assure you that I will destroy your life before my blade cuts your body to ribbons." He smirked. "That's been my goal for the Keyblade Master since… well, since I found out who it was.

"But first, I have some work to do." A pillar of darkness covered the blond, slowly smothering everything, even the bright flash of cold light on the sword, as he stepped inside. His voice added, in an empty courtyard of death and autumn leaves, "Don't get too comfortable. I'll be ba-aack…" And then, the last teasing note echoing and fading away in a gentle breath of wind, he was gone.

Yet the brunette found himself staring at the last spot Demyx had been standing in, emotions still in a whirlwind. Goofy and Donald drew in close by his sides; he was away of them and their carefully maintained silence. _Say something, _he wanted to tell them both, to come back alive, _tell me we have to get moving- Organization Thirteen is still loose out there, and so are the Heartless. We have the King and Riku to find. Tell me. Remind me- say that we're doing the right thing still. _

_Tell me that the Organization is a threat. That, in a basic sense, that man's- Xaldin's- death wasn't murder. That Demyx is another unexpected ally; like Malificent. Please, tell me any of that… I don't want to be right… I don't want to be right in thinking that the Organization is being hunted down, one-by-one, and then it's going to be us, and the worlds will fall…_

_All we did… was for nothing._

"Sora-" Donald finally broke through his thoughts. The feel of the wizard's feathered hand on his arm was light, barely touching, but it spoke his concern.

Sora straightened up, pushing all of his thoughts aside. "We have to go back to Hollow Bastion."

"But, Sora-!"

He shook his head. "No, it's that job we have to help finish first. C'mon, guys." The gummi ship had been left outside of the castle's courtyard gates, safely out of sight but within easy range. The brunette turned and started running in that direction, giving Beast's home a quick glance and all of its occupants a silent hello and goodbye. With Xaldin dead, there was no threat that the Beast could not handle alone.

He hoped.

Donald's and Goofy's footsteps followed close behind him; together, the three of them left the world behind in the gummi ship, Sora at the helm. A set and determined look on his face, he directed the ship's course back to Hollow Bastion. The trip went in silence.

* * *

A soft wind pushed against the back and curled around his legs, carrying with it the smell of the ocean- cool, salty air that held the promise of escape and adventure for those sailing the near-black waters. It teased the senses. Brushed and circled around his head under the hood, and the loose fabric of the sleeves and lower half of the black coat.

Every step he took echoed off the scene around him. After years of weathering the elements, a natural cove had been smoothed out; the path wound around the edge, a tunnel with occassional holes opening out to the view of the sea until it twisted into the caves. The moonlight shining down from an almost flawless sky lit up spots of the path where the rock and wooden constructions from ages past- brideges or who knows what- was absent. The light partially illuminated the smooth rock walls, the uneven ground, and the rock outcropping that rose in the center of the cavern, and the antique, ornately decorated chest that stood like an honored statue, above it all. A ring of water, glittering with gold coins shucked into the bottom, circlued the middle; puddles dotted the ground in small depressions; the rest of the rocks were damp and slippery. A narrow, zig-zagging path of stones higher than the water led to the center, which was layered into a lopsided, uneven sort of staircase towards the chest. Every even surface sparkled in the moon's rays, littered by gold coins.

Luxord eyed the chest warily, noting the intricate metal decorating along its sides, and the dried drips of blood flaking off in spots. But enough remained to proviode a generic warning to would-be treasure-seekers. The light flickered and momentarily dimmed, and in those brief seconds before the moon pulled out of the thin clouds, the shadows in the un-lit area flexed their claws, claiming more of the space as their's- withdrawing slowly, reluctant to let the light return. Otherwise, nothing else moved or made a sound- except the wind, making another push into his back as if to say 'what are you waiting for?- the first step to completing your mission is right there!'

Luxord almost smiled and began walking again, moving with ease over the wet rocks without slipping. Halfway there, he stopped and glanced back over his shoulder. Nothing, again. The feeling lessened, but he could still sense someone watching him, the pressure of their eyes on him like fifty pounds.

"Xigbar?"

His voice echoed back to him as it bounced and reflected over the entire cavern; _Xigbar… Xig-bar… Xig…bar..?_ No one else answered, least of all the sniper himself. Still, he waited a few more seconds, flicking his bright blue eyes around the gloomy interior, listening for any sort of noise. Nothing. Yet the feeling of being watched, closely, remained; if anything, it only began to grow stronger.

Luxord started walking again. _He better not be following me this time-_ It would be just like the sniper to ignore his words for the fortieth plus times. This stalking business was becoming quite annoying-

A whisper almost as soft as the wind racing in off the coast, spoke into his ear. Someone's hand, clasping and heavy, fell onto his shoulder. "Did you, Number Ten, murder my Zexion..?"

He recognized that voice. Luxord frowned and glanced back over his shoulder. "Demyx?"

A snarl- the hand let him go, only to be thrown forwards by a gush of power. It felt like some sort of hand pushing against his back; he lost his breath just from that. Luxord fell to the ground, barely throwing his arms out to break his fall in time. Demyx's voice followed him in a roar, echoing off the walls, "Answer me!"

The closest puddles of water surged up, the water coiling around itslef in a tight spiral, and lashed at him. Out of reflex, Luxord summoned a wall of human-sized playing cards in a circle around him; the cards shuddered as the water crashed into them. _Hold... _Luxord pushed himself up to his hands and knees, mentally straining to keep the defense up as the attacking magic built up power, pressing relentlessly to break through. Sudden dismay made a weight in his stomach. _I can't hold it-_

The water broke through. The blond flinched, flaying uselessly as first one coil and then another curled around his limbs and tightened their holds. They propelled him up into the air.

Below, Demyx stepped slowly towards him, stopping once he was close. The clouds shifted over the moon, cutting off half the light for a few horrifying seconds. The shadows fell especially over the younger boy's face, giving him a predatory mask, blue eyes losing the usual jovial light and color, now lit instead with some crazed glint. His smile was likewise just as twisted.

A small voice in the back of Luxord's mind whispered, _This is not Demyx..._

The reaper smile twitched, curled up into a snarl. The moon fully reappeared; Luxord's throat tightened as the newly strengthened light ran over the edge of a sword blade.

"Answer... me!"

The sword lunged forward. At the very edge of his awareness, he sensed someone warping behind him. Strong arms locked around his waist, and just as the blade nicked his skin, the world dimmed out, became so much blurred color splotches, shifting shifting shifting. Far off, far away, the fake Demyx bellowed with rage. The colors shifted again, becoming mutual shades of grays and finally impossible blinding white.

It was at that point the ground reappeared under Luxord's feet; the blond blinked slowly, his head spinning from the vertigo of rapid teleporation's side-effects, as well as his stomach. The corridor was there; the person standing directly behind, their arms still wound around him, was there; the light came from the pulsing electric lights, not the moon; no sword; no Demyx, or whomever that had been. But the memory was there, perfectly clear, and so was the pain, sharp on the side of his arm.

Their momentum carried on backwards, however, and Luxord found himself tipping back, landing directly on top of his rescuer in a jumble of limbs.

"Oof-!" An all too familiar voice wheezed past one ear at the landing. Luxord scowled and twisted out of the other man's hold, scrambling off to the side and glaring back. He wasn't so surprised by whom he found gingerly sitting up; rather it sparked some annoyance.

_Again?_

The Nobody's cloak hood had fallen back, exposing the thin, lightly tanned face, raven hair slicked back into a ponytail with its almost silver streak directly down the middle. Xigbar's gold-flecked eyes, the left hidden beneath a black eyepatch, appraised the blond, the jagged scar over the lower left side curled up as he smiled. "You okay?" His eyes landed on the rip in the blond's sleeve.

Luxord resisted the urge to follow the sniper's gaze, and answered, "I'm fine." He got back up to his feet; the secondary rustles and clinks came from the other man following suit. "Were you following me again, Xigbar?"

Hurt flashed in the sniper's visible eye. "Wha- no! I just..."

Luxord watched him, waiting.

"Eh- I'll just show you. C'mon!" Before he could protest, Xigbar grabbed his arm and teleported.

This time the trip crumpled what remained of his thin control over his stomach; Luxord doubled over and retched until the wave of nauseous passed. He straightened back up slowly, one hand absent-mindedly wiping off his mouth, and thus saw the scene unfold inch by inch. Xigbar kept silent.

The light was dimmer, wavering for one. Evidence of the wreckage was strewn all over the floor, between large bits of metal to tiny slivers of twisted, broken wires, that continued in a chaotic pattern up towards the very back of the room. The very worst was in the panels: everyone's had been smashed, ripped, shaken, apart. Most of what remained was the very base; a few had somehow managed to keep a few inches of colored glass to its ruined frame. (Luxord noted in passing that his was one of those lucky 'survivors'- a small piece of metal that would have been the bottom edge of a die remained sticking up off the base.) The room's walls, floor, and ceiling were also heavily decorated with large holes and dents.

Everything had been destroyed practically- everything but one piece.

Zexion's panel. All of its damage had been inflicted upon it months ago, when its owner had ceased to exist.

Luxord took another look around, shock drying up anything he might have said, eyes stopping once again on the Cloaked Schemer's tomb. He had been present when Xemnas had sent a blow into the bleak, dead, panel. But that had been planned, calm and controlled. This, though… this was someone losing their temper and sanity.

_Did you, Number Ten-_?

The blond suppressed a shudder. _Don't be an idiot- Demyx couldn't have done this…_

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Xigbar tense up slightly, and then just as quickly relax. "The Superior wants to see us," he said quietly. Luxord nodded, not all too surprised that the message/order came through the sniper; whenever they were together, it seemed that Xemnas purposely tried to ignore him.

Locating Xemnas's presence in the castle was not difficult. Once they had their destination in mind, they teleported up towards the Altar of Naught. The highest point of the Castle That Never Was, the Altar of Naught was rounded off by a thin, decorative railing and a curving staircase that broke off and circled down to Ruin and Creation's Passage (few of them actually bothered walking the castle too much, unless they were only a short distance away). Overhead and slightly ahead of them, a brilliant moon in the shape of a heart shone. From this high up, the details of every crater, every swirling bit of magic, was easy to see: it felt like a Nobody could touch the cold surface, if only he stretched out his fingers…

Xemnas stood in front of the far railing, back to them, hands clasped. Light from the moon gave his silver hair bland shades of gold. Luxord stayed where he was close to the staircase as Xigbar took a few hesitant steps forward; except for Demyx, Luxord was the next lowest on the totem pole following Axel's disappearance- and thus, he knew better than to needlessly bother his superiors- which basically meant Xemnas.

"I see you managed to get Number Ten back," Xemnas stated. It might have been an accusation.

Xigbar drew to a stop so quickly it was a wonder Luxord thought that the sniper's boots didn't squeak.

"Xaldin?"

"I got to the castle, but he wasn't there, and I couldn't pick up his presence again."

His expression was hidden to him, but Luxord caught how Xemnas's hands clenched, shoulders tensing up. Even so, his voice remained even, betraying nothing of what he might have been 'feeling'. "Nonexistent then."

Xigbar winced, and Luxord wasn't sure if he managed to keep his own reaction in check. In Nobody terms, 'nonexistent' was equivalent to 'dead', and the thought of Xaldin dead… Another impossibility suddenly becoming an announced reality.

"Is Saix back?" Xigbar asked.

Xemnas was silent.

"..Sir..?"

Luxord glanced over at Xigbar. The sniper met his eyes briefly before looking away. But not quickly enough; not soon enough that the gambler did not catch the same twisting emotions in the brunette's gold eyes that he felt inside. Saix? Dead?

"How about Axel?"

"What of Number Eight?"

Xigbar shifted his weight slightly, nervously. "Do you want one of us to look for him?"

"No. Let the traitor die."

The words held such vehemence behind them that Xigbar took a step back as Xemnas turned around to face them both. Feral orange eyes landed directly on Luxord, and although the superior kept his face otherwise expression, the blond read the burning anger and hatred in those eyes, and immediately knew it was all aimed at, for him.

_He doesn't really think that _I_ did it?_ Luxord glanced away first, not really wanting to find the answer to that question. _Don't be daft- you wouldn't be here if that was the case._ Even so.., now the Organization was down to one traitor, the three of them upon the Altar of Naught, and Demyx. Wait…

"Did you see the enemy at any point, Xigbar?" Xemnas asked in the background.

"No, but," the sniper flicked a look over at Luxord.

"Demyx," the blond breathed at first, and then louder, more sure, repeated, "Demyx. Number Nine attacked me on Port Royal before Xigbar reached me."

Xemnas blinked. "Number Ten, are you seriously suggesting that _Demyx_ not only attacked but actually managed to harm both _Saix _and _Xaldin_? And not just inflicted a lucky hit, but _disposed_ them?"

"I-" Luxord hesitated, thinking. "Yes." He wanted to continue about hearing Demyx's voice, but changed, and seeing his face with the reflected light of a sword glinting in the caves, but he knew that simple answer was far better than getting stuck rambling on and sounding like an idiot.

Xemnas said nothing for several seconds, still and merely looking at Luxord.

"Xemnas," Xigbar started, drawing the superior's attention away, "Demyx hasn't returned from his mission yet."

Now a thoughtful expression crossed the superior's face, and after a few more seconds, he slowly nodded. "I need some time to plan. Luxord-" The blond nodded, and focused. It took more energy than he initially believed he would need (apparently that fight had taken more out of him than he thought), but when he was finished, a barrier circled the entire Castle. Inside, nothing was different, but where hours passed to them, only seconds or minutes would pass outside. "Both of you stay here until I summon you again. Dismissed."

Xigbar was by his side before the second syllable had even been uttered, and led them both down the stairs to Ruin and Creation's Passage.

Luxord stopped as soon as his foot touched the bottom step, and watched as the oblivious sniper continued on. "Xigbar-"

The man stopped walking and glanced back towards him.

"What is going on?"

He shrugged. "Apparently, Demyx has gone insane."

"How- his mission. What was it?"

"Bring some old moldy mirror back… only Demmie could mess _that_ one up."

_And go crazy doing it..?_ Luxord sighed. With a few quick strides he was back by Xigbar's side, and the two of them continued on.

The sniper elbowed him playfully a few quiet minutes later and leaned in closer. "Rumor has it," he started in a whisper, "that the mirror is supposed to be able to connect the viewer passage into other dimensions." He smiled and pulled away. "As if-! That thing probably just makes you go bonkers and you only _think_ you're in another dimension."

Luxord studied the brunette closely. _He really believes that._ From what Xigbar had divulged of his past life, neither he nor Luxord were much like Xemnas or the other first six members of the Organization- they weren't scientists, physicists, chemists or what have you. Just one adventurer who knew Xemnas from far before, and another who was picked up off of some no name world. But having the power to bend time, Luxord knew better than to just shrug off the idea without seriously considering it.

If an event, no matter how significant, had occurred only seconds before or later, then the future changed. Simple as that. Take today, for example: if Demyx had gone to Port Royal before the Beast's Castle, before Xigbar had left the Castle That Never Was…

Luxord bit his tongue, trying to ignore the most recent bout of nauseous and dizziness. That close- just seconds away from becoming 'nonexistent' himself. "We're going to have to… dispose of Demyx, aren't we?"

"The odds are definitely in favor of it." Xigbar smiled to himself at the tease/joke. "You're not worried are you? Demyx isn't that tough."

"After what must have happened to Saix and Xaldin you truly believe that?" The question came off a little more hotly than he had intended, but it wiped off that annoying little grin on the sniper's face.

"Whoa- whoa! What's with the hostility? They were just… unlucky. Or something."

"Unlucky?! Xigbar, Demyx _killed-_"

"Heyheyhey, Luxord-"

The sniper's hands landed heavily on Luxord's shoulders, effectively breaking through his words. The blond fell quiet, eyes taking in the man now in front of him, now close. The physical, yes, but also the easy confidence, the solemn and sincere look in his gold eyes that all so often glinted when he smiled; recalling how simple Xigbar made everything sound and look, how he could lighten up a dark mood, how problems and worries just melted into something unimportant when he was around, that one time he had gotten back from a mission and announced to the entire room that now, not only did he have a skunk stripe, but also the smell of a skunk, and started laughing as the rest of the room gagged on the stench…

"Luxord, Demyx is as good as dead now. Besides, even _if_ he's stronger, I won't let him hurt you."

There. Magical moment, done.

Luxord calmly removed the sniper's hands and teleported away, alone. He reappeared in the Addled Impasse, with its big floor to ceiling windows that held their own generous view of Kingdom Hearts. The blond stood in front of one, studying the moon, and coming up with various things to tell Xigbar off with should he be foolish enough to follow. Minutes ticked by, slowly, and soon the blond relaxed.

He leaned against the cold window pane, eyes closed, and tried not to think. Naturally it didn't work.

_Did you, Number Ten, kill my Zexion?_

His thoughts wandered onto the 'unlucky' Saix and Xaldin, and whether or not they had to answer that question as well.

* * *

Zexion sat on the edge of the cage's bed. He kept his back straight, legs together, hands on his knees. Only the cycle of air going through his body betrayed any motion at all, and that was how he wanted it. If he allowed any more exertion than that he'd be pacing around his prison, nerves frayed, anxious and shaking. Meditating, at least, was more befitting a traitor than the crazed gibbering of a caged animal.

_Listen to me, Zexion-_

He was the one that had found him: Demyx. The blond had collapsed in one of the city's dark corners, wounded, beaten, bloodied. Risking moving about the streets was bad enough for Nobodies then, and only a few in the original misfit group left the safety of numbers to wander Hollow Bastion, risking light zealots to ambush them. But that day, Zexion had, and he had stumbled upon the unconscious blond, and brought him back to the group's hideout.

The blond had taken a long time to completely heal.

Zexion was there, when he had woken up for the first time.

Eyes, the color of the sea, of the sky, the river, and everything else that had even a tint of blue in it, found Zexion's face immediately.

_Where am I..?_

Hesitation. _Home. If you want, of course. _But even if Demyx, as the blond had soon told him, was not excited to stay, Zexion had little intention of letting him make a choice without trying his hardest to be certain the answer was going to be a 'yes.'

_Oh… that's nice._ A smile crossed the young man's face, and then he relaxed completely again, falling asleep.

Following that day, Demyx stuck close to Zexion's side, like an innocent little puppy, as he was acclimated to his new life. And beyond that. For once, Zexion hadn't minded. Life seen through Demyx's eyes was refreshingly bright and optimistic. No the longer daily gloom and doom of dodging whole-hearted fools. But peaceful (mostly).

So on the day Demyx grabbed his arm and led him to a secluded spot, and began rambling quickly about how it was ridiculous that Nobodies were being treated so badly- why don't _we_ hunt _them_?, Zexion didn't object. Didn't see the lurking madness that was then just barely shown in the very back of those eyes, didn't wonder what the future Demyx was talking about would really mean, what was bound to happen. All he said was that they should bring it up to the others- and yes, the demonstrations Demyx made with the lovely new sword were excellent. Yes, he was stronger than ever before.

How foolish, looking back on it now.

Could he have stopped it from happening?

Two familiar scents breached his thoughts. Zexion opened his eyes and turned his attention to the other two surviving Nobodies standing on the outside of the cage. In the few hours- was it that much?- they had both changed. Xigbar now wore a beaten traveling trenchcoat, one that had seen far better, newer days. Underneath he wore a simple gray shirt and dark jeans; a pair of holsters held on belts crisscrossed over his hips, the butts of his two guns jutting out for easy access. To complete the look, he also had on old, lace-up boots and a dying cowboy hat.

Next to the gunslinger, Larxene practically shone. A kimono-esque dress in a rose red with reaching branches of cherry blossoms, tied with a wide gold sash, was folded her body, gold-trimmed end coming to the middle of her thighs. The left side was sleeveless; the other billowed down to her elbow. Boots only a shade darker than her skin curved with the line of her calves to below her knees. Her hair had been French-braided back except for her bangs; those fell along the sides of her face.

A cherry blossom was threaded in her hair over one ear and, as Zexion noted with another glance at Xigbar, the sniper wore a dangling earring with a small die at the end.

_I see…_ Zexion stood up and walked slowly but purposely towards them. He had already removed the uniform coat; it lay behind on the bed like a discarded skin of a snake, flanked by the gloves. Outrageously, he felt underdressed compared to them. Literally. Demyx liked seeing him without a shirt on (among various other articles of clothing, but that wasn't about to be discussed here and now).

Xigbar appraised him. "You ready this time?"

It was a loaded question and they both knew it. But there was no turning back now; this had to be done. Zexion nodded. "I'm ready."

The sniper returned the gesture and stepped back as Larxene stepped forward. Line of light traced over her fingers and collected into a solid ball of her palm; the orb changed shape, lengthening out and becoming a very solid, very real sai with a gold hilt and a light blue blade. Sharp pieces, like curved, jagged lightning, pushed off the sides.

"Stand back," she told him and stabbed the entire blade back, into the cage door's lock. Zexion stepped back, slightly worried. Like the collar around his neck, the lock was magicked- probably set up with plenty of traps to foil any would-be rescuer's attempts to free a prisoner and to alert the spellcaster if escape had occurred.

_Besides, if it does alert him, then he'll come right to us which will make our job of hunting him down all that more easy._

He ignored the sudden wave of nauseous.

Lightning, powerful but controlled, surged through the cage's entire skeleton. The hairs on his arms and the back of his neck stood up, charged by the static change in the air. After thirty seconds, Larxene released the spell; the ensuing darkness was filled with bright red after images. With an audible grunt of effort, Larxene jerked the sai out of the burnt metal; the door swung open on screechy hinges.

No traps were set off, no one came running.

Zexion raised a hand to his neck, his fingers lightly touched the braided collar. He could no longer sense the magic tied into it, and he found it hard to remain in control as he tore at the cords and ripped them off. The collar fell to the floor at his feet, dead. "I didn't know you learned how to dispel magic, Larxene."

The girl's white teeth flashed in the dark. Her response came in between harsh gasps for air. "You've missed a lot, Zexion. That was a tough one, though." They started walking towards the door, Zexion flanked on either side by Xigbar and Larxene.

_Listen to me, Zexion._

Eyes of the sea and sky.

The Illusionist shivered, suddenly cold and feeling very vulnerable.

Xigbar nudged him in the arm, holding something out to him. Zexion took it, fingering the light cotton material before slipping it on over his head. If Demyx saw him now he would be beyond livid; the plain white shirt did nothing for him in any way. It hung loose over his chest, sleeves covering his arms completely, and even bore a small rip in the bottom hem, where an old fight had ripped it.

But this, it was perfect. He didn't have a particularly strong bond to any of the others in the late Organization, no lost lover or irreplaceable best friend like Larxene or Xigbar. He only had Demyx to begin with, and there would be only Demyx to end with.

* * *

*once again, I apologize for this outrageously late update. For those who are still reading, thanks a whole bunch and forever more- you are all awesome. I hope everyone enjoyed it, and don't worry… I plan on updating long before this year is out as well. Later gators!*


	9. Chapter 9

*So yeah- deadlines and me just don't mix, huh? Sorry everyone for making you wait yet again- hope you enjoy!*

Disclaimer: nothing is minez

Chapter Nine:

* * *

Demyx slammed yet another door behind him, which in the silence of the corridor, created a boom loud enough to make the blond jump. Even though he was alone (Sora had vanished to who-knows-where in or outside the castle, thank goodness), a wave of heat passed over his face. "Why can't one of you guys just have the mirror?" Demyx muttered back at the door, gesturing back towards the endless amount of rooms he had already searched through with no obvious luck "Please?"

The door, naturally enough, did not give him any verbal reply. Nor did it swing open of its own accord, revealing the twin mirror in his Hollow Bastion- Ka-Ching, you said the magic words. Now here's your reward behind door number twelve-hundred and thirteen...-

But for a brief, very brief, moment he hoped.

With a sigh, Demyx turned away. Maybe it would be in the next room (although, knowing his luck, it probably wouldn't be). He took a half step drawing to a stop only ten feet away from two Nobodies dressed... interestingly. Yet, despite the huge distinction between styles, they both wore identical gargoyle scowls. Larxene held a sai in one hand (in a brief crackle of light, she soon held its twin in the other hand), and Xigbar's hand was edging not-so-subtley to the handle of his gun.

"Um... hello..?" Demyx asked/said. He caught a bit of movement slightly behind the other two, and found Zexion staring back at him. Something in his stomach twisted. "Zexion..."

The Illusionist's eyes met his briefly and flicked away. He mumbled something to the others, too low for Demyx to hear. Xigbar nodded, for once serious and solemn. Larxene looked like she wanted to skip in joy; as it was, she did let a feral grin loose. "Finally-!"

"...finally what?" Demyx asked, sure he already knew. It didn't exactly take a genius to figure this one out, afterall.

The sniper withdrew one of the guns at his hip "'Finally', it ends."

_Oh boy._

"Everything you've done," Larxene added, "all of these wars, destruction, pain-"

"The Organization itself."

"-killing all of the others... -it's over."

"It has to." Zexion's voice, barely heard, cut Demyx the most. He hadn't really expected it, but he was hoping he wouldn't have to face an old friend. Not like this.

The blond couldn't make himself look at Zexion. "...I see..."

"'I see'?" Larxene snarled. "Is that all you have to say to us? What- no taunts? No threats? Actually, I'm so glad I won't have to listen to your arrogant, psychotic voice anymore! I have been waiting for months for this... years. Ever since you killed Marluxia-!" The woman was one step away from losing it; amid the angry screams, the wild gestures, she looked clsoe to breaking into tears... or a frenzied rage.

"Larxene-"

"No! No more-!"

She disappeared- blink, gone. _Where_-? A fist, powered with a burst of electricity, slammed right into Demyx's chest. The blond found himself flying backwards, a cry of both surprise and pain bursting out. Flashes of red and gold swept past his vision, too rapidly that he couldn't even be sure they were there to begin with. But he felt the multiple blows nailing his body, over limbs and torso alike, with split-second regularity, all the same as the first.

Darkness flickered fast amid the flurry of Larxene's moves out of the corner of his eye. And just like that, he crashed back down to earth, wounds screaming out all the more at the impact. Vaguely, Demxy which of the other two had decided to jump in: Xigbar? Or Zexion? A high-pitched cry- of both anger and surprise, mostly the latter- broke through the haze; Demyx uncurled his body and looked up.

Zexion stood just in front of him, glancing briefly back over his shoulder at the blond to make sure he was okay. Over the Illusionist's shoulder, Demyx saw Larxene suspended up in the air by what he first took to be snakes but upon longer examination saw to be just Darkness, springing out from the corridor's walls and holding the young woman's limbs still... more or less. Snarls and curses erupted from her mouth with equal frequency amid her violent struggles. Lightning would pierce the inky binds, leaving only temporary holes that soon flowed shut again.

"Zexion-! You back-stabbing two-faced bastard- I am going to _kill_ you, do you hear me?"

Xigbar was a lot quieter; Demyx heard the multiple chain of shoots go off and immediately fell back towards the ground with a yip. It might have been his ears ringing, but he was pretty sure he heard some form of pinging almost directly after he ducked again; but he was sure of the small kick to his side and Zexion's hurried orders, "Get up! C'mon, move it!"

Larxene cried out in surprise as the Darkness tossed her backwards, straight into Xigbar.

"Wh-what-?" The blond stammered out, only getting half-way up before being jerked the rest of the way up.

"Get moving-"

More shots were already following them, along with more of Larxene's shouting and lightning. Zexion gave him a swift push, forcing the blond to start running or trip and fall flat on his face- naturally he ran. The Illusionist's footsteps kept close to his back. "But- but what about-" Demyx started, coming to a startled stop when his caught a flash of movement a few feet ahead and off to their right; a pink laser shot erupted out from the middle of the portal, blocked by a sudden move of Darkness, not quite unlike the ones twisted over Larxene earlier. _What-?_

Zexion nudged him again. "I got us covered- just keep running!"

"Oookay..."

Running was good- he could do that.

"Why don't we just teleport?" He called back.

"The castle restricts our ability to- I can't open a portal that will get us anywhere any faster than running-"

The hallway flew past in snatches: between portals popping up in multiple directions around them with lasers (apparently Xigbar's abilities had not been limited any, somehow), and Larxene hounding the back of their heels (he was also pretty sure he spied her appearing on either side of their small group at the same time at least once, possibly several times), there was only so much he could see with Zexion shielding the attacks.

"Go right- through the double doors-"

Demyx followed Zexion's orders without a second thought, crashing through the set of doors as a bolt of lightning curved over his head. The blond spared a quick moment to look around. He couldn't remember seeing this room before (_Just how long have we been running for?_)- it was far roomier than the corridor, though the same carpet kept flowing through the center under his feet. Statues of armor, fit only to be worn by twisted, horrid gargoyles, lined both sides in intervals. Other bits of weaponry decorated the walls too. At the other end of the carpet, another, larger set of doors stood closed.

He heard Zexion come to a stop behind him and slowed down as well. "No," Zexion gestured him away with a shake of his head, "keep going-! I'll be right there." The blond hesitated, but did as he was told, fetching quick glances over his shoulder frequently. The Illusionist had moved further inside, and he kept moving backwards at a quick walk. Tendrils of Darkness radiated out along the floor from his feet, swimming quickly towards the statues; one receded towards his hand, carrying back a katana blade; Zexion took it in his left hand.

_Why hasn't he summoned that Lexicon thing yet?_ Demyx wondered, glancing back forwards. One of the gargoyle statues suddenly moved with much ear-splitting screeches and creeks. It stepped forward from its post, 'stretching' out its limbs and testing an old battle axe held in its forelimbs. _Oh geez-_ He must have been staring at the statue for too long- his feet tripped up, spilling him down onto the carpet, inches, he saw, from the doors. That was just his luck.

Demyx scrambled up to his feet, glancing back over his shoulder to check on Zexion as he did so.

The latter had made it just past half-way to the doors, walking with quick steps backwards with no apparent concern for the gargoyles. Solid, black shapes- bits of Darkness, Demyx figured- did fly overhead, carrying or propelling various weapons from the walls with them. At the very second Xigbar and Larxene appeared, Zexion gestured towards them with his free hand, muttering some word; the gargoyles and free-moving Darkness immediately zoned in on the sniper and nymph, charging for the attack. They were quickly surrounded, and too busy defending themselves to try attacking.

_Yes!_ The blond turned back towards the door, eagerly grabbing the handles and pulled. _We're gonna get out of this alive-!_

The doors didn't even budge. Good mood quickly disappearing, Demyx tried again, leaning back on his feet and putting his weight into the tug. Not even an ounce of movement. On the off chance the doors actually opened the other way, he even tried pushing at the handles, with absolutely no success. "You have _got_ to be kidding me-"

Gun shots, lightning strikes, and the repeated crashes of metal started to fill the room.

"What's wrong-?" Zexion's words barely made it through the clatter behind them.

Demyx spared a glance at the Illusionist. "The doors aren't opening-!"

Zexion placed a hand on the door for a second and swore. "Larxene must have put some spell on them before they freed me."

"But there's a way to break through it or something right?"

The Illusionist gave him a short, anxious look.

"Oh don't tell me that-!"

"I didn't say anything," Zexion cut him off, spinning quickly back around. He called a shield up, just in time to catch a stream of laser bullets headed their way. "Crap- they got through all of them already."

Demyx spied a flash of movement off to the man's left. "Look out-" He raised a hand, summoning up a small water spell; large spheres of solid water nailed Larxene, knocking her effectively off balance; she fell to the floor and vanished in a flash of light. Other clones were already rushing towards them; more shots hit Zexion's shield.

"You're going to have to open a portal."

"Wait- I thought you said we couldn't?"

"Yes, _I_ can't, _they_ can't. But _you_- I mean _he_ could, so it stands to reason that you should be able to as well."

"But I'm not-"

Zexion raised the old katana blade, barely parrying one of the Larxene clones' attacks. "At least try!" Darkness bound around the clone's body and flung her into another one; the shield popped back up in time to catch more laser shots.

Demyx gulped. "O-okay-" He closed his eyes, hoping to block out some of the commotion. The darkness was readily available, though it felt a little different than how he remembered it- a little wilder, more unpredictable. "Where am I creating a portal to?"

"Anywhere... but... here!"

"Um, right." Demyx opened the portal behind him, grabbed ahold of Zexion, and stepped backwards. The last thing he saw of the inside of the castle were three Larxenes rushing in, blue and yellow sais raised and crackling with lightning.

And then they were outside, standing in the middle of what should have been the deserted city outside his world's Castle that Never Was, but was instead the crowded center of something close to Hollow Bastion. People, in various states of filth and poverty, dropped to the broken, dirty street on hands and knees, heads bowed so low they almost touched the ground. In less than a second, no one was standing save himself and Zexion. It was also silent- amid a nearly countless number of people, no one said a word or dared move. Fear was evident: those closest to him curled up on themselves, trying to stay as far away as possible.

_Oh boy._

Zexion brushed past his side, katana blade pointing harmlessly towards the ground in a relaxed grip. "If you'll follow me, my Lord- the rebels' hideout was discovered further east."

"Um, right-" Demyx nodded, hoping he looked and sounded something like his double, "Lead on." And walked after Zexion with (something like) purposeful, confident strides.

People scurried out of their way without getting to their feet. The Illusionist ignored them completely, and the blond tried to do the same, but it got harder the longer they kept going.

Finally, _finally_ the numbers of people diminished- and at an even longer amount of time later, they were left to themselves once again. Demyx released a sigh of relief. "Thank god-"

Zexion scowled over his shoulder at the blond. "We're not there yet, _my Lord_, and the 'rebels' are bound to be on our tails soon enough."

"Huh? You mean Xig-" Demyx caught the second glare and cut himself off. Another few seconds drifted by before he ventured, "So.., where are we headed to anyways, Zexion?"

The Illusionist slowed down until he was walking side-by-side with the blond. "I'm following Axel's scent to one of his hide outs… He's managed to keep clear of both the real rebels and us for months- it should be safe."

_Axel_? Demyx wondered. But then again why wouldn't the redhead be here? "What if he's already there?"

"He won't be-"

"How do you know?"

Zexion hesitated. "He's scared to death of you. Don't worry," the Illusionist quickly added at the stunned look on Demyx's face, "he has plenty of other places to go to- I caught the scent of several trails leading away from the market. I bet there's a hide-out at the end of each one."

"…Oh." Demyx fell silent, letting these new small bits of information to process. Zexion took the lead again, pushing their pace to a brisk walk. "What about Xigbar and Larxene?"

"Hm?"

"They're following us, right? How long is it going to take for them to-?"

"Calm-"

"But-"

"Calm down. The rebels have been on our tails every time we venture out of the Castle- Xigbar and Larxene will have the whole city to search through, with constant distractions thrown at them thanks to the rebels…" Zexion began slowing down the pace. "We have time."

Well, that was a relief.

"Ah- here we are," Zexion announced less than cheerfully, coming to a full stop in front of what Demyx would definitely _not_ call a 'hide-out'. The terrain from the edge of the city on was not forgiving: mostly flat ground at various elevations with little to no scraggly and struggling vegetation. The area Zexion had stopped in front of was yet another example; a haphazard pile of broken rocks broke the otherwise flat monotony. Tall, yellowing weeds grew up out from the edges, apparently unable to grow nearby.

"Uh, Zexion-"

The Illusionist paid him no attention, striding towards the patch of weeds.

"Um-"

He was hushed. "Let me concentrate for a second."

"..sorry-"

"Shush-!"

Demyx bit back his most recent apology. Quiet moments passed, making the blond more anxious and edgy; he heartily jumped out of his skin when Zexion suddenly plunged the katana blade into the ground amid the weeds, causing a burst of flames. Over the roar of the blaze, he was pretty sure he heard the other man curse.

The fires died down quickly; to the blond's relief, Zexion was unharmed- although there was a liberal amount of soot and burnt shreds of plant matter sticking to his clothes which he half-heartedly swiped at. "Are you okay..?" Demyx started asking, stopping at the look the Illusionist gave him. "What was that all about then?"

"It was a spell to keep out intruders from finding the entrance- Axel's, apparently… it should be okay, now. And I can replace it later- but let's just go in for now."

"Wha-?" the blond followed Zexion's gesture to the pile on now non-rocks and weeds. The katana blade itself was still buried in the ground, horrifically burnt up and more a study of molten, twisted metal than an actual sword- but the scenery it was near had changed. The pile of rocks had shifted places somewhat, far enough that Demyx could spy the hole in the middle at the center. "…wait… we're going to be hiding in a hole in the ground?"

Zexion sighed. "I imagine it leads to some kind of cave-"

"Oh goody-"

"Would you rather wait for Xigbar and Larxene to find you? C'mon-" Zexion turned away, giving the katana sword a brief, dismissive look, before calmly descending down the hole into the depths beyond.

…_oh boy._ Demyx sighed. He hurried after the Illusionist, though he took the trip down slower and more carefully than Zexion's graceful moves had been. Even so, he still nearly tripped with the last step. The light and air temperature dropped in brightness and heat the further down he went, and as he stood blinking and trying to get used to the darkness of the underground, he figured that the trip must have taken him and Zexion down by about ten or so feet. _Oh goody- just as deep as a grave- deeper even… thanks, Axel._ Sudden thoughts of being trapped down there threatened his mind.

His eyes quickly adjusted. The grave-cave might have been as far down as a final resting place, but the width was not; it stretched out to about ten feet around, curving out gently from the entrance towards a nearly indiscernible back. No furniture or any other kind of home-y equipment was evident; just a pile of old, blackened and grayed ashes towards the back. Zexion stood by the mound of ashes, kneeling on the ground and considering it.

"I don't suppose you know any fire magic..?" The Illusionist asked. The cave was not all that big, but sounds still bounced lightly around the air, barely making an echo. His eyes' search over the blond's face must have given away some kind of answer, as Zexion turned his gaze away, speaking to himself, "Okay... I guess I can support that spell, too-"

"What spell?" Demyx started, not getting it all out before Zexion waved his hand in a tight circle over the ash pile. Darkness sprung up from his hand, following the moves of his hand as he made another twisty-circle. Another pass later and the Darkness was revolving in a tight sphere by itself. Zexion dropped his hand back to his side, clearly tired. "..um, what is that supposed to do?" The blond asked.

A verbal answer was not necessary: the small sphere of Darkness- no bigger than a baseball- slowly began to expand in diameter, the energies it was made up of swirling faster and faster until the entire spell was roughly basketball-sized and did not look like it was revolving at all. It was also very black- very Dark. In fact, as Demyx soon noted, the darkness of the orb was darker than that of the surrounding cave... which just did not make any sense to his mind. Why would a ball of Darkness make the surrounding darkness less... dark?

Soft shuffles marked Zexion's movement. The blond's eyes snapped back to the other Nobody. In the new non-light, Demyx could see more than just outlines- there were almost colors in the cave now. The Illusionist spoke softly, "It's just absorbing the surrounding darkness in the air... It'll keep going until light hits it or there's no longer any darkness to fuel it." Zexion's eyes considered the spell. "Think of it... as a negative fire."

"Whatever you say... I trust you."

A frown clearly crossed his friend's face. "You shouldn't."

"But, why-?"

Zexion shook his head, effectively silencing him with the gesture. "Nevermind."

"...okay..." Demyx allowed.

Zexion nodded, and then gestured at the blond to come closer. He sat Indian-style on the ground- although it was more of a fall than a voluntary movement- which Demyx followed suit and ended up shifting around on the dirty, cold and totally uncomfortable earth across from the Illusionist.

"We need to talk."

Demyx froze, eyes watching the other Nobody warily.

"About what our next step is going to be," Zexion continued after a split second later.

"Oh, okay." The blond relaxed.

"First, you're not the Demyx we all know here, correct..?"

"No- defintely not."

Something both relieved and saddened passed behind the Illusionist's eyes. ".. I just wanted to be sure... Good. Then, I need to know how you got here."

"That's... kinda've a long story."

"Just tell me the essential parts."

"Um... well, I was supposed to bring this mirror back for the Superior, but I accidentally bumped into it, ." Demyx rattled off the words at a quick pace, not liking the slowly deepening frown over Zexion's face. Usually that look meant 'Demyx, you're not making any sense', and he really did not know how to make the story any less crazy than it was.

"A mirror? You're sure?"

The blond nodded, waiting for it...

"Then we're going to have to find it."

"Wait- you believe me?"

Zexion arched an eyebrow. "Of course- that _was _the truth, right?"

"Yeah, yeah- but," Demyx forced himself to stop. This was probably the first time someone had simply taken his word without any doubts- even more so, it was Zexion doing it, the guy who seemed to pay as little attention to him as the Superior and Saix did. Might as well enjoy it while it lasted. _Which will be how long.._? "Nevermind- it's nothing."

"All right... Anyway, what does this mirror look like?"

"Uh, it's big, oval-ish I think, and it has a metal frame. I think."

"That's all?"

"Yeah... sorry."

Zexion shook the apology off with a similar gesture of his head. "No, we're lucky you saw as much of it as you did considering what little time you had to look at it. Unfortunately, I don't remember ever seeing a mirror like that back in the Castle, or anywhere in Hollow Bastion for that matter... And with the amount of worlds He conquered, it could be literally anywhere." He bowed his head, face crunched up in what the blond recognized to be deep thought. He was muttering under his breath: "I might get lucky and have a few days before anyone finds him... and then I'd be able to search through a few locations- but where? Where would He hide a mirror- or would He just have it destroyed..?"

Demyx gulped. _Destroyed! Oh no..._ A cold hand clenched over his chest. To never get out of this nightmare- even if it did have Zexion in it- to never go 'home'... "Why destory some ugly old mirror? That's like, seven years of bad luck..." His chuckle, weak to begin with, petered out after only two laughs.

"For lack of a better reason, like 'it's a powerful magical item and you don't want it used against you', I would guess destruction for the sake of destruction."

"Really?"

"You- he… possesses a nasty temper."

The blond felt sick. _So do I._

Zexion must have caught a glimpse of his expression- he smiled slightly and continued, "Don't worry, you're nothing like him."

That did not help. It was a lie: Demyx knew, if no one else did apparently, how many times dark thoughts had run across his mind, how many times he had been close to just letting loose. And so on.

There was no way to tell Zexion that.

"Yeah," Demyx finally replied, "but I could become him."

"No you wouldn't. You're too... jumpy."

"But I could _be_ him-"

"But. You. Won't." Zexion cut over him in a harsh growl. Iced blue eyes locked onto the blond's, glaring. Long seconds passed, the blond too shocked to even react. Had he ever seen Zexion so infuriated before...? He could not remember.

_Oh no, I don't want _him_ to leave now too-_

That brought in another chilling thought:

What if Zexion turned on him?

_Could I really fight him_.._?_

But then the ice melted in the Illusionist's gaze, his whole expression and posture softening. He sighed, "Now please, Demyx, I need to concentrate and just... _think_ without any interruptions."

The blond nodded. "...sorry."

Zexion did not answer.

So Demyx settled himself down as best as possible, biting his tongue every time the urge to speak came over him. He kept himself occuppied, more or less, by studying Zexion. The Nobody's face was the essence of serenity, body poised perfectly still and yet relaxed at the same time. Skin smooth and unflawed, save for a definte red shadow circling around his neck. Eyes, always intelligent and focused, closed for now. He wondered what the Cloaked Schemer would do if he leaned in closer and just ever so gently touched the Nobody's shoulder.

Coppery liquid filled over his mouth as he had to bite his tongue harder than usual in order to keep quiet. Heat flowed over his face. Demyx ducked his head down so Zexion would not see it, focusing on his hands. If he was not supposed to be quiet he would summon his sitar and start playing some chords or something- anything- to stop thinking. Music would calm him down. But of course he said he would let Zexion think in peace... Then again, there was air guitar.

In the middle of threading through a scale on invisible neck and strings, the blond risked a quick glance up at the Cloaked Schemer. He ducked his head back down, fingers moving faster.

_...no, I couldn't fight him. Not ever._

* * *

The monotonous passing of time found Luxord waiting- always waiting- for the Superior's summons in the meeting room- what Demyx would call the "Throne Room". The gambler had to admit that the room did hold a certain resemblance to such: the thirteen chairs did look a lot like towering thrones. The bright light that filled the rest of the Castle all but obliterated every shadow from the curved walls. Only pale grays delinated the ring of seats, getting deeper in shade when it outlined the semi-raised platform of the floor far below. The Nobody symbol boasted the only color of the room in a medium gray, outlined in thin black.

Luxord ran his eyes unwillingly over the now empty spots where Organization members would sit during meetings. Thirteen chairs to look at (well, technically twelve really). His hands threaded through a deck of cards, turning tricks, shuffling, sliding from thumb to pinky and back again and so on, all on their own. Thirteen chairs, thirteen Nobodies to consider.

First Xemnas: always sitting tall and strong, looking down at them, now planning another's fate.

Then Xigbar, all too alive and well, followed by Zexion, already gone.

Axel, missing.

Himself. Enough said.

Marluxia once upon a time, and then Roxas.

Halfway around the circle now, going into the finishing stretch with Larxene.

Demyx- whatever had happened to him.

Saix, suddenly eliminated.

Ditto Lexaeous.

Same for Xaldin, now.

Then Xemnas, again.

Another trip around the room, and another. One more for old time's sake.

_There's far too many empty seats here._

With Axel gone, Demyx probably going to be eliminated, meetings were going to be... pointless. Just three Nobodies, debating... what, exactly? What was left to talk about? Ever since the end at Castle Oblivion, any kind of democracy between the Superior and Saix and the rest of the members had fizzled out of existence. There was the mission, meted out to them through Number VII, and then the wait for the next assignment. Any discussions at meetings were all philosophical at best. Once Xemnas's word was announced, that was it. After Castle Oblivion, you either stood with the Organization or you stood alone. After, you were with Xemnas, or against.

There was no middle ground.

_As if there was a lot of it before_.

No, there had not been.

But this was not the time to worry over that.

The cards flowed smoothly through his hands. Luxord looked down at them, considering. It was far too tempting to try taking a look-

"Hey, Luxord-" The blond glanced past his hands, past his feet just dangling over the edge of the chair- or should he just give up and call it a throne from now on?- all the way down to the floor below. Xigbar stood in the middle of the Nobody symbol, gold eye flicking up at him, and then away and back again.

"Xemnas?"

"Yeah. He made his decision."

_Oh, how nice._ That explained why the sniper was here, telling him verbally. Luxord let the cards disappear in mere wisps of smoke, regardless of how badly his nervous fingers would rather have something handy to fiddle with. "He's still at the Altar of Naught, correct?"

"Yeah.."

The blond nodded, once, curtly. Before Xigbar had the chance to ask, Luxord closed his eyes and concentrated briefly. When he opened his eyes, he was standing atop the Altar of Naught, Xigbar by his side, shaking off a stray wisp of Darkness clinging to a side of his face.

Xemnas stood as he had before, back turned towards the two of them, head tilted back, gaze locked onto Kingdom Hearts. For all the hours that had passed, he might as well have been contemplating the visible craters and rises of the moon's surfaces.

_For all that we know_, Luxord thought, _he did_.

Oh, for sure the Superior had been thinking. The question was what had passed through Xemnas's head. How to best deal with Demyx's alarming changes? or, How to most quickly finish this mess and get back to completing Kingdom Hearts?

Luxord had a feeling it was the latter.

_Will that even give us our hearts back..? I no longer know.._.

"Number II.., Number X," Xemnas's sudden greeting broke through the gambler's thoughts, "it is truly... regrettable, but it seems this is what the Organization is to be reduced to. Allowing Number IX to roam free for any longer would only further hinder our goals. Therefore-"

_Here's where the debate should begin.._ The blond opened his mouth to speak, but a sharp elbow digging into his side shut him up. Luxord glanced over to the side and cast the sniper a glare. Xigbar narrowed his one eye and slightly shook his head. _Now what?_

Too late.

"-we will search for Number IX and, once we find him, eliminate him." Xemnas turned around. "Any questions?"

"Where should we start looking?" Xigbar asked quietly.

"We will start with Hollow Bastion- in the vale."

The sniper inclined his head in acknowledgment.

"Let us be off." The Superior vanished from sight in a portal. Luxord reached for the Darkness to open his own portal, but he felt Xigbar latch a hand around his upper arm and before he could fight the sniper off, they were drawn into the realm.

Wordlessly the blond shook him off.

"Can we just talk for a minute?" Xigbar asked.

"It would have been more productive to speak at the 'meeting'," Luxord snapped back. "This is a suicide mission- you must realize that. Even Xemnas must know that… it's like he's not even thinking anymore." He shook his head, trying ti reorder his thoughts on the matter at hand. "Why did you stop me?"

"Look, Luxord- about Xemnas.." Xigbar hesitated, then continued, "it's kinda complicated-"

The blond arched an eyebrow at him.

""I-I really can't say what-"

Luxord sighed. "Xemnas will be waiting for us- we should get going." Xigbar was still talking- he shut the words out and opened the other end of the portal for Hollow Bastion.

Xemnas was indeed waiting for them. Luxord smoothed the hood up over his head, not acknowledging the sniper's appearance from the realm. The vale stretched out past the cliff edge before them in an almost never-ending meadow of blue. Something like dread seeped into his stomach and settled there as Xemnas and Xigbar turned and began walking along the edge.

_This is stupid…_

Luxord shoved his thoughts back and followed.

* * *

Five invisibly and silently played songs later, the Illusionist must have reached some kind of conclusion. The Nobody got his feet under him and stood up. Demyx sheepishly stopped the string of chords and followed Zexion's slow steps towards the entrance. "Hey- where are you going..?" he asked when it became very clear that Zexion had no intention of speaking.

_I-is he just going to leave me here?_

"Assuming that the mirror wasn't destroyed and that He hid it, I think it'll be in one of two places. If it's not in either of those, it will probably be somewhere on this world, and I will search around Hollow Bastion when I return," Zexion replied without ever once slowing down.

"When you return?" Demyx repeated. "You can't go now-! Besides, I got Sora to go look for the mirror here."

Half of the blond's expectations of the Illusionist's reactions came true; the latter's footsteps slammed to a halt, feet half-turning him back to Demyx. His eyes had widened considerably, face paling beyond normal. "You did... what?" Zexion asked around a shaky breath. "Are you insane-? Why are you even going near that kid-?" He stopped himself with a bit of obvious effort. "No.., you just don't _know_."

Demyx had shrunk into himself during the mini tirade, shaken. _Where did I mess up _this _time_? "What's the problem? Doesn't Sora take orders from me (well, Him)...?"

"...in a way, yes... I just hope the mirror isn't on this world- or, if it is, that the kid gets distracted by the rebels..."

The blond blinked, confused.

Zexion sighed. "Do you know why Sora is the best at what he does?"

"...um, he's good at sneaking around..?"

"Partially. He's a great assassin because he's a great hunter. No matter whom his target is, Sora has been able to track down every single one within two days- at most. Usually he reports back to you after a mission before the day is out."

Demyx gulped. "Seriously?"

"Of course."

"Heh, I thought you were the best tracker around with that nose of your's and all..."

"He's better."

Those two words, spoken as a single, acknowledged fact. Coming out of Zexion's mouth, they meant a lot, Demyx knew. He couldn't help it: he gulped again, a little harder this time with such a dry throat. "What about inanimate objects?" he asked. "Is Sora that good finding those?"

Zexion's eyes moved away from his face, clearly thinking. "...I don't know. I don't think you- He- has ever given that kind of mission to Sora before."

"Well, I guess we'll find out."

Zexion blanched. Since first learning of the assassin's involvement, his face had regained some of its color and the rest of his posture had relaxed greatly. Not completely- but enough to show that he could deal with it, that he was currently handling it, in thought at least. Demyx took that as a good sign. "I'd rather not," the Illusionist replied, breaking a part of the illusion that the blond had created himself. So much for Zexion having all the answers.

"..why?"

"I don't know if Sora has already figured out who you really are, or what he will do when he does-"

Not _if_, Demyx noted, _when_.

The Illusionist paused before continuing on, "If he wanted to kill you, I don't know if I'll be able to stop him- he's a good fighter and I'm-... I'm out of practice."

"You did really good against Xigbar and Larxene-"

"That wasn't a straight fight," Zexion interrupted him quickly, "and if you hadn't teleported us out, they would have overwhelmed us in seconds. Easily."

"O-oh." That was all the blond could come up with for that. _It was really that bad..?_ Images of the recent escape came back to his head, unbidden. He pushed them away quickly, trying not to visibly flinch. Yeah, it had been that bad.

"Yes, exactly."

"...sorry."

The Illusionist let out an exasperated breath, one hand rubbing at his temple. Sure sign of a headache. "_Please_ stop saying that."

"Sor-um..."

_What am I supposed to replace 'sorry' with? 'My bad'? 'Oops'? Those don't really work..._

While Demyx puzzled over that, Zexion shook his head and turned to go. "Nevermind. I'll be back in a few hours at most... we'll figure something out about Sora then."

"Wait-!" Demyx scrambled up to his feet. Of course his foot was the one to find that tiny patch of loose dirt that nearly spilled him face-first to the ground again, but he managed to regain his balance.

"What is it this time?" Zexion snapped.

"You can't go out there- you're exhausted!"

A frown creased the Cloaked Schemer's face. "I'm perfectly fine-"

"No, you only get headaches when you're tired, _and _you're getting impatient. _And_ you're going to plan around Sora later? You wouldn't leave a situation unaccounted for if you had the energy to, uh, account for it!" Demyx stopped himself there, before going into a rant with more observations that only a stalker would recognize and pick out. Even so, it was a tough fight. This might not be the Zexion from _his_ world, but this was still _Zexion_; he did not want the Nobody putting himself into danger for his sake.

"We don't have time for this-"

"You've already been slinging major spells all over the place," the blond interrupted, a little softer this time, "nevermind running around and keeping that dark-eating orb thing alive. You haven't summoned that Lexicon thing yet to help out... so if you're 'out of practice', how are you gonna defend yourself if you're attacked?"

Zexion crossed his arms over his chest. Only Cranky, Tired Zexion did that, but Demyx kept himself from pointing that out. "I won't have to fight as long as I can still run away- which, with my sense of smell and remaining energy, I can do easily."

"What if they," whoever 'they' were, Demyx inwardly added to himself, "stay downwind of you? Or you can't escape them?"

"Demyx..-"

"Let me come with you."

The statement surprised the two of them, but Demyx forced himself not to show it. It was a request- no, demand- he wanted to make, one had had wanted to make for a long time now, and he would not back down now. Not when it was finally out in the air.

Zexion blinked and shook his head. The look of surprise still had not left his face. "N-no, I can't."

"Let me come with you," Demyx repeated simply.

"No."

"Please?"

"No."  
"Why not?" Demyx asked.

"You won't be safe out there," Zexion replied evenly, "You don't know anything about... _anything_."

Something like anger irked at the blond. "You mean I'll just be in your way. Right?"

Zexion's silence was answer enough for him.

"Okay, I'm no rocket scientist- I get that, and I don't really care. So I'm incompetent at everything I do- so what? I still want to _try_! I'm not much of a fighter, true, but I _can_ watch your back, you know- or help set up portals, or anything else you need done." Demyx closed his eyes, forcing himself to breathe for a minute. When he reopened his eyes, the Illusionist was watching him steadily with something he could only hope was agreement. "I'm not completely useless."

Zexion was quiet for another few seconds. "That's not what I meant, Demyx."

The blond stared at him, waiting.

"Do you know what it's like to hate a person, a thing, with such intensity that you would risk your life to fight it? Not just to risk it, but to willingly throw it away?"

"What are you talking about?" He _had_ hated- maybe not to that point, but hatred all the same.

"Did you forget Xigbar and Larxene? Or the city and the rebles I mentioned?" Zexion started. "Everyone has been fighting against this... empire we've created for almost seven years now. After a while, mercy and forgiveness is no longer an option to the enemy. The enemy itself becomes just a symbol- a sign of oppression, horror, slavery and so on- a thing and not a group of individuals to fight. If an opportunity presents itself, people will take it and just destroy it as much as possible."

"But," Demyx had to swallow around the sudden desert grating in his voice. He had known that getting caught would come with bad consequences, but still... "I'm not _him_. You noticed that! Won't others?"

The Illusionist gave him a long, unnervingly steady look. "They'll see that you're different. They'll see that you are now weak and vulnerable. They will see the chance for freedom, for vengeance, and they will see that the time to act is now. You are not you, Demyx, you're the fear they've been trying to defeat. It doesn't matter that you're not really Him. They won't see that."

"..not even Xigbar or Larxene?"

Something in Zexion's eyes softened. Demyx was not sure, but he thought it was probably pity. "Demyx..," Zexion started, paused, and went on, "all they cared about was that you seemed defeatable at long, long, long last. And I agreed with them."

'_And I agreed with them_'. It echoed in Demyx's mind, stabbing a spot that would be his heart repeatedly.

"As for the rest of the empire, I wouldn't be surprised if they had citizens who'd be willing to kill you as well. The forces he's left there might have turned too."

_Like Xigbar and Larxene,_ Demyx thought to himself. _Like Zexion- almost_.

"This is the safest spot for you right now. You're not coming with me, understand?"

The blond bit his lip. "But what if they attack you?"

"No one will. As far as any one else knows, I'm still a fully functional and powerful member of your-.. his- choosen elites. They don't want me, anyways."

"You said the rebels are willing to eliminate Xigbar or Larxene-"

"-because they believe wiping out the remainders of your underlings will bring you out. And," the Cloaked Schemer added, "we're part of that symbol, too."

"Then they _will_ attack you! Or they might try to use you to get to me- him! Like, taking you hostage and stuff-"

Zexion let out a short breath- if it had not been Zexion doing that, it would be more accurately described as a snort. "Demyx has not allowed any person to become close to him in any way. Taking hostages is useless against him. He doesn't... care."

"Yeah, well, I do." Another bold statement. It made Zexion start a little, just enough that Demyx found the courage to join Zexion's side without any apologetic hints in his expression. He looked the other Nobody straight in the eye. "I'm going with you."

Zexion's eyes ran over the blond. "And that's your final word on the subject?" he asked, voice low and dry.

"Yep."

"Then I apologize for doing this."

"Doing what..?" Demyx started, blinking and confused as Zexion raised his left hand up to the blond's forehead. The Cloaked Schemer's index finger was extended, tip just barely brushing a stray bit of Demyx's hair to touch his skin. He meant to take a step back- he had not realized just how close he had gotten to Zexion- but his legs felt deadened, as heavy and immobile as pillars of iron.

The sensation spread quickly throughout his body. "He-hey.." Demyx's eyelids thudded closed like gates, forced back up only with sheer will, "... what did you do-oo-?" His eyes shut once more, this time for good. Dimly, Demyx felt his legs just give out from under him. He should have fallen. All the way to an unyeilding ground and the dull pain from impact, and all that jazz. But someone's arms grabbed him before that point, giving him a more gentle landing to the floor- no pain at all.

The same person lifted his head up, working the hood to his uniform up over his head. As a cushion, it only alleviated some of the bumpy ground unconsciousness.

Unfortunately, they left after that.

The blond's thoughts were warbling, not just threatening to stop, but actually starting to short circuit and fizzle into nothing-ness. _That... wasn't... fair..._ Demyx could not help but to fall back into sleep.

_Thanks for catching me..., Zexion..._

_ ...please come back soon.._

* * *

Once it was clear that nothing walked the twisting corridors of the castle except a few lone Heartless and some dust bunnies, Axel grew bolder and ventured less cautiously around corners, going further into rooms than he might have otherwise dared. Soon he was past the disorganized office- _Someone was in a chaotic mood_…- and stood on the catwalk-hallway overlooking the giant room.

Axel whistled a tune at a slower pace, pausing after each note. The echoes caught the noise and threw it about, creating a haunting, circling recording. _Who on earth_, the redhead thought to himself, _would actually want to create a machine that makes Heartless..?_

_I don't know- maybe they were bored?_ Something close to Roxas's voice answered.

The whistling died.

Axel turned away from the railing and continued on into the next room. He was staring at the soft glow of a computer screen when another thought hit him: _why can't I sense Saix anymore?_ The second his presence had crossed Axel's notice, he had headed straight for the nearest hiding spot: the Castle. Maybe not the most low-key spot in Hollow Bastion, but it had seemed to work. And now it did not matter anymore.

But just to be sure the redhead pushed his senses out as far as they could go. _Crap_. All hopes of continuing his search without any hassling soon vanished. _What the hell-? The Superior is here?_ Axel ran a hand through his hair. _…If I try teleporting now, he'll know it instantly… Looks like I'm stuck here for the time being- I'll just keep a low profile and-_

Axel's eyes widened at the sudden appearance of a portal. "You have got to be kidding me…" he muttered.

"Kidding about what?"

Axel relaxed, as the newcomer- only ditzy Demyx- stepped out of the darkness. He could handle the blond. "..Nothing. What are you doing here, Demyx?"

A smile played over the other Nobody's face. "Oh… no real reason. I was looking for you, actually…"

He tried not to laugh. Not too much, at least. "Yeah right- Saix sending you out in his stead."

"Oh, Saix doesn't give _me_ orders… Not that he'll be giving any out to anyone for a while, either, but that's beside the point. Rest assured, Axel, I'm here of my own volition."

Axel frowned, slightly. "Right…, well, run along Demmy, I don't have any business with you."

A dark cloud passed over the blond's face. "Don't call me that. Anyways, I have business with you. I really hope it wasn't you- I might like to keep as my first pet again."

_What the..?_ "What in the world are you talking about?"

"First things first-" Demyx held a hand out near his side: water flowed over his hand down towards the ground, solidifying into a sword. (_When did he get that? _Axel wondered.) "-were you the one that killed my Zexion?"

"'My Zexion'?" The redhead repeated. "You're awfully full of yourself today, aren't you?" His eyes ran over the sword again, trying to ignore his thoughts. No one had been there- how could Demyx have known..?

The blond just laughed.

_..Something's up. That's it- forget Xemnas, I'm getting out of here._ But something suddenly tightened around his waist. Axel glanced down, finding not just the one coil, but several ropes of water looping around his body. "Crap-" He reached for the fire, and muttered another curse when it refused to obey. _How did he do that?_

The blond's chuckles died off. "So- your answer?"

"Demyx, let me go- I'd hate to have to hurt you."

"Bullshit. You can't do a damn thing and you know it."

"Don't test me."

"No, Axel," Demyx gestured with his free hand0 the water suddenly picked him up completely off the ground by a good foot, "don't test _me_." He flicked his hand again and then the redhead found himself flying through the air, somehow making it through the opening into the next room rather than hitting the wall. He skidded along the ground, coming to an abrupt stop as his back and head smacked into an unyielding surface.

Out of the corner of his eyes, he spied a sliver of his reflection before cloth landed over his face. _Shitshitshit-_ Axel flailed an arm loose and yanked the fabric off. Demyx's face filled his vision, anger showing in a way the redhead could not remember ever seeing before. Instinctively he pulled back, head smacking into the mirror again-

-and then something was tugging at his head and upper body, pulling him backwards and _into _something. The last he remembered seeing was the blond's expression change, looking almost curious beyond the rage, and then intense light.

_Jeez- now what?_

* * *

Demyx settled back on his heels, feeling oddly calm as the mirror sucked up the redhead's feet. He cocked his head to one side. "…that's very interesting. Hmmm…"

The glass was moving like the surface of a pond when a pebble hit it, rings radiating out from the spot where Axel's feet had last been. It came to a stop after a few seconds. As an experiment, the blond lifted a hand up, reaching out towards the glass, when light beamed out into his face. Demyx shut his eyes, letting loose a string of curses. Only once he saw dark behind his eyelids instead of red did he dare open his eyes.

"Oh-," the blond felt a smile return, and continued in a near purr, "hello again."

Axel lay huddled in a shivering mass at his feet, long limbs trying to scrunch in tighter to his body, head down. His clothes were in a worse state than the blond remembered: ripped up in shreds and permanently stained with dirt.

Demyx nudged the redhead's shoulder. "I said hello, Axel."

Bright green eyes peered up from underneath long, tangled hair and widened nearly twice their original size. His shivers stopped.

"Aren't you going to say 'hello' back to me? It's only polite."

No movement- Axel did not even blink.

Demyx sighed. "Too bad your other self isn't here… I really would have made him my pet- it was so much fun breaking you the first time." He smiled to himself, enjoying the way it made the fear grow in the redhead's eyes. It almost made him laugh. "Oh don't worry- I'm not gonna hurt you this time. However, I _am _a busy man, so shoo-!" The word barely left his mouth before Axel obeyed in a flurry of uncoordinated movement. He made a wide berth around Demyx on all fours, and left the closeted room in much the same fashion.

He could still hear Axel as he got back up to his own feet, never turning away from the mirror. At a series of echoing crashes Demyx burst out laughing, turning his head slightly over his shoulder to shout, "Still haven't mastered the art of walking on two legs, have you?"

Axel did not answer, but then again the blond was not expecting him to.

_Hmmm… I should kill him the next time I see him… I can't _stand_ slow learners._

He dismissed it from mind, turning his thoughts over to the interesting little device standing oh-so-innocently before him. "So… you're a mirror in this dimension..," Demyx said softly to himself. "Hmm… well, I have no desire to go home anytime soon- not when the fun is just starting, so-" He scooped the cloth up from the ground and threw it over the frame: he was not about to risk sending himself anywhere.

The cloth settled nicely.

Demyx lifted Duer-ik up and stabbed the sword's point straight into the middle of the covered glass. An inhuman shriek pierced the small room. The blond ignored it and pushed harder. The noise grew in volume and pitch - he felt goose bumps rise over his skin from it.

The shrieks fell silent as the glass shattered apart.

A chunk of the frame came off as Demyx shook his sword free. He kicked it, sending it into a dark corner. "And that," he said, "should take care of that."

Something brushed over his senses- ripples of power. The blond cocked his head to one side, almost as if he could hear the three Nobody's presences. He chuckled to himself and opened a portal to Villian's Vale. "Oh, you guys are making this too easy-"

The portal disappeared behind him, leaving nothing but trails of thin smoke reflecting off shards of glass.


End file.
